Turnover seems to be ramping up at the senior director level. Current employees should not be expected to be 'invited' to apply for recently vacant positions at the senior level. But you will be tasked with filling the role until the position is staffed, at the same salary, with not even a temporary increase in salary or an on-the-spot bonus. It's 'great' that the potential incoming president, not yet on any ballot, but sure of their succession, was brought in to boost morale. However, putting staff on the spot implying/saying that you're 'a change agent' that cares about the front line employees that do the work means nothing when you agree that we don't have the board's full support to do the jobs we've been hired for as professionals. Don't tell us to come see you discreetly before you leave the office to lay it all on the line. Discreet? Was/Is there a secret room that would have cloaked us in invisibility preserving anonymity? Pllbbtt!!!
Process changes are often made in the executive conference room without input from the people that actually do the job. The senior staff cannot discern theoretical v. practical application when it comes to job functions. The path forward then becomes one where you're told that it's of little concern how it gets done, just that it needs to get done. Senior staff is comfortable enough telling their team members that they won't take the blame alone if something goes wrong with some ill-conceived idea but those same 'execs' have no problem standing in the glaring light of success alone. Some staff are allowed to completely disregard established procedures put in place to streamline outdated processes struggling because they depend on their 'friendships' with senior directors to slow pace anything not of significance to them.
The salaries are not competitive like they'd have you believe in the real world because they still operate about 5-7 years BEHIND industry trends - technology, internal controls, accountability, etc.
The work life balance that others have written about as being ideal are for the people that more often than not delegate their responsibilities onto other staff.