United Nations Foundation Reviews in Washington, DC

Former Employee – worked at United Nations Foundation as an intern for less than a year

Pros – UN Foundation has a lot going for it in terms of the intern experiece:
Many opportunities to make substantive contributions.
Variety of projects
Company/Intern Bonding and Service Projects
Good connections, friendly and supportive colleagues.
PAID!

Cons – Very top-down structure, especially in decision making. Employee vs. Executive vision occasionally seemed to clash.
Corporate atmosphere, especially for a non-profit

Advice to Senior Management – Keep a more watchful eye on organizational culture.

Former Employee – worked at United Nations Foundation

Pros – a very idealistic and enthusiastic workforce, well funded with many side perks (amazing happy hours, etc.). Several very interesting campaigns, and employees are generally very well educated and very nice.

Cons – some concerns about long-term sustainability after the end of Ted Turner's contributions; the shift from substantive work towards more campaign & fundraising efforts means the focus of the organization is shifting (this could be good or bad depending on your perspective). There is a culture of having a bit too much money to work with - problems are often addressed by throwing cash at them, rather than creative problem solving under fiscal constraints (although, the flipside would likely be much worse)

Advice to Senior Management – The leadership is generally very supportive, however there is a definite sense of disconnect between realities on the ground and what the management seems to understand. There is definitely preferential treatment for different campaigns; but this seems to manifest less in bold leadership and more in slightly passive aggressive (and not entirely transparent) management. Also, the environment is a bit corporate - it would be nice to relax a little bit; might be able to attract more issue-oriented people that way who would otherwise be turned off by working at a place resembling a wall street bank.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at United Nations Foundation

Pros – The UN foundation is an amazing place, working daily with these people is indeed a privilege.
I have worked in a few non-profits and other organizations and these guys do it right. The atmosphere is buzzing with good energy and the results these guys achieve are amazing.

Cons – Fast paced, make sure you can keep up!

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend