Good! - Marketing Coordinator Texas Restaurant Association Employee Review

You are able to see the behind the scenes effort that goes into this long running and well established nonprofit for the restaurant/service industry. It is a very rewarding experience to be a part of an organization that focuses on helping those who work in as well as own restaurants and bars across the entire state of Texas. There is also a huge effort in creating programs that help challenge high school students who are interested in the culinary arts. The more you give the more you get here, and team work is going to give you the best results. Excellent benefits and a beautiful new office close to downtown Austin.

The cons depend upon your efforts. If you are not the self-motivated type, you could easily fall behind with your opportunities here. If you are looking to do the bare minimum and you do not work well with others, this is not the right place for you.

The TRA is still respected in the State Legislature and a few people who work there have a true passion for the restaurant industry and its members.

The remainder of the employees are content with mediocrity. Those who care and come to work with fresh ideas are ridiculed, chastised and maligned by the C-level management team, which has created a culture of distrust, paranoia and status quo. Gossip and innuendo rule the day, and the employees who instigate this seem to be rewarded for their determination to tear down their peers while completing as little work as possible. The CFO and COO have an extremely acrimonious relationship, creating division lines between departments that are not only uncomfortable, but impossible to work within if you are someone who’s more concerned with the organization’s mission than its internal politics. One would hope that eventually upper leadership will change, and new ideas and people will be brought in to freshen up the mission, go back to work for the members, and clean house of the toxic atmosphere. Until then, it’s not worth the risk to your professional reputation if you want to further a career in association management.