American Cancer Society Reviews in Atlanta, GA Area

Pros

Amazing PTO, Great work life balance for some. Great staff committed to an amazing mission.

Cons

Overly bureaucratic, Very political & slow moving and hugely wasteful of donor dollars. 13 CEOs but org continues to cut frontline staff.

Advice to Senior Management

REDUCE the number of divisions (CEOs and all other duplicate positions) ASAP! Get our of your ivory tower and meet with your staff. Eliminate the RED TAPE and embrace innovation.

Pros

Many people who work there have been personally impacted by cancer. So there is a great deal of passion, enthusiasm and support.

Cons

Inefficiently operated. Multiple CEO's, multiple and duplicative management. They have started to consolidate; however top management is still biased toward status quo, and while they say they want more accountability, the rules are applied situationally.

Advice to Senior Management

Rid yourselves of all excuses, and do what you know needs to be done sooner than later. Too many fiefdoms and personal agendas to really be serious about the mission as defined. You are incredibly vulnerable and risk be a non player. The best asset, science/research, is taken for granted and under supported.

Pros

* Lots of paid time off, in the 1st year I started I got 25 paid days off and you get more paid days off for each year you work there.
* Low pressure environment makes it ideal for those needing a work/home balance, I honestly work 30-50 hours a week and I have never worked more than 60 hours in a week
* Brand recognition, looks great on your resume
* You get recognition for good work and likewise to be fair, the dead weight are dealt with pretty quickly
* Generous benefit package you get life insurance, 403(b) plan which matches contributions up to 4%, commuter benefit discounts, vacation/travel discounts. I got really cheap auto insurance thanks to ACS

Cons

* The pay is average and you don't get bonuses but in my opinion it's only fair because the work is not high pressure
* Revolving door system, lots of people come and go, for each year I have been working at ACS there has been a major layoff round every winter, the joke is that we have annual layoffs although the higher ups use euphemisms like "restructuring", "transformation", etc... Not to mention I have been with ACS for 4 years and I have gone through 5 managers and am on my 6th manager. Lord only knows how long my manager is going to last.

Advice to Senior Management

None - I am happy with my work experience at American Cancer Society. When I first started working at ACS it was pretty chaotic but it's for the better in that the dead weight are getting dealt with and now the good performers get recognition.

Pros

benefits, work/life balance (if you have a supportive spvr.)

Cons

Staff expected to raise money, donate money, volunteer time - above and beyond one's major job responsibilities.

Pros

Good People, good benefits and work balance.

Cons

Poor Leadership, no direction, middle management poor performance.

Pros

great people, realistic expectations, clear goals, good work-life balance, good benefits, and I get to feel like I'm making a difference.

Cons

technology is outdated, so that makes some work harder than it needs to be (though this is changing finally). Organization is so big, there's not a lot of coordination between departments - it results in a lot of redundancy and waste. There seems to be a lack of documented business processes: unless you've been there a long time (and many people have), you won't know who to go to for anything outside of your small work group. You just have to ask around and get shifted from department to department (sometimes works, sometimes doesn't). Some work is so specialized, there's no room to move up - frustrating!

Advice to Senior Management

better documented business practices, better communication between groups, better technology, and clearer career paths are needed.

Pros

Offers great programs for cancer patients and their families, it can be rewarding to feel like you are working for a good cause.

Cons

Negative environment that is very hierarchal, very title driven culture, lots if inflated titles and salaries, promotions are given based on who you know not what you know, hard for minorities to advance in organization, most minorities are in support level positions, incompetent supervisors/managers that are self promoting and egotistical, lack of accountability for people managers.

Advice to Senior Management

People managers should be help accountable and rewarded based on how well they manage their staff and represent the organization's core values internally. Ongoing diversity and sensitivity training should be manadatory for all staff.

Pros

Great benefits, great mission, great company, if you know how to negotiate salary- great salary, office setting is great

Cons

Location with Atlanta traffic is terrible, employees at the global health department were NOT friendly, senior management don't even talk with new employees, if feels like no one wanted me there, lots of backstabbing, discrimination, lazy employees, slow process, a lot of favoritism among relationships with senior management and employees, aggressivity and resilience with new employees for jobs' responsibilities, unclear expectations....

Advice to Senior Management

Appreciate your employees, team building activities, open-up and welcome new employees, define clear expectations, streamline the process, set-up clear goals, roles and responsibilities, teamwork, less micro-management

Pros

Excellent benefits package and generous time off compared to for profits.Most line employees are nice and very friendly.

Cons

Since 2007 the organization has focused their energy on command and control organization through fear of layoffs has killed creativity and built up resentment. Organizational management is more concerned with owning headcount and gathering functions underneath them than helping people. It has become a power struggle between key VPs to see who can run more of the company poorly than how many people they can help with their work. It is a toxic environment governed by fear. When VPs come over to you and suggest that you may or may not be with the company in a month and walk away with a smile, it destroys morale.

Advice to Senior Management

Dr. Seffrin is an amazing CEO and ambassador for the ACS. He needs to turn his energy inward and clean out his VP level staff. Some who have just arrived need to be shown the door first. The culture is what drives the productivity at a non-profit more than in any other company and both are in a sever state of decay and neglect right now. Fix the leadership, fix the culture, and the entire organization will turn around.

Pros

If you get a good team where the supervisor is fair across the board in all respects, then it is a good place to work for a great cause.

Cons

Very manipulative supervisors. Only worried about their own progress and status. Most director level and up have reached that level not because of their accomplishments but only because of the length of time they have been there. They have no respect for your education or past experience.

Advice to Senior Management

Need to have their managers at all levels assessed and investigate why so many people are quitting ACS.