Pros
Two gorgeous hotels. Some people are genuinely happy there, but most would leave at the first sign of a better opportunity. Great “eye candy” for the Resume.
Cons
Tons of favoritism...especially towards people who fit their “Duke” mold. If you come from wealth or influence or have the right physical attributes you will unquestionably be treated better as an employee. From the surface you would never know it. They are meticulously secretive about how things are run there. The hotels deploy very specific “accommodations” for certain employees they deem of value or “high performance”. These hotels need to uphold an very specific image of prestige for Duke and will bend the rules to keep some people around while enforcing outdated, impersonal policies towards others as a means of control (these are the people not worth the time and resources to bend the rules). HR is immensely complacent and uninvolved compared to other hotels. They promote ZERO team engagement and do nothing to make the hotel a better place to work. The mentality is very “you should be grateful to get paid by Duke and have a free meal”, or, “if you don’t like it go find another job”. As long as they have Duke to fill the rooms these hotels have no reason to evolve. Job security sure, but you will most likely be miserable and craving meaning or connectedness to your career and the people you spend a third of your life with. Ironic that Duke, a leader in organizational leadership, owns these hotels that struggle to keep top talent and provide a more modern culture.
