PolicyLink Reviews

Pros

Exciting place to work if you are passionate about social justice. Colleagues are interesting, fun and very encouraging. Your ideas and input are always heard and you are encouraged to pursue them if you are able to make time in your schedule to pursue them. Overall a great company to work for.

Cons

There are so many projects going on that clear goals are not always defined - this can make things very chaotic and overwhelming. Additionally, there is little chance for advancement for entry and mid-level employees.

Pros

PolicyLink has great values and exciting projects to work on. Colleagues are interesting, creative, and diverse. You will work hard and be expected to produce above excellent work consistently. There are great benefits for a non profit and a comfortable working environment.

Cons

The organization does not have a clear path for ascension and it can be difficult to move up without higher education degrees. At times the on boarding process can be confusing and you will have the hit the ground running without a significant amount of orientation.

Pros

Powerful mission, dedicated and brilliant staff, management committed to success of organization

Cons

Poor business management and resource management leave staff feeling poorly utilized and so much attention is placed on outward appearances that it can be counterproductive. It is not always easy working with such a deeply entrenched, and charismatic leader - its hard to go against the grain, and rarely productive to try.

Pros

Most of the staff are intelligent, thoughtful people who are clearly passionate about equity and social justice issues and very dedicated to the work that PolicyLink does; for most of the staff, it's not just a job. The organization is well-connected to other intermediaries and funders. For the most part, the work environment was also very collegial; in my years at PolicyLink, I became close with a number of colleagues and still keep in touch with many, and consider them friends. Health benefits were good, as were the vacation benefits. The Founder and CEO is an accomplished woman with a dynamic presence that can be very inspiring.

Cons

On the flip side, to some extent, the fact that the founder is still CEO and that she has such a presence has created a bit of a "cult of personality" climate. It's wonderful that staff are so bought into the organization, but this has also fostered too much self-congratulation and self-promotion. Staff meetings dragged on for almost two hours some weeks, and became a vehicle for some people to present solely for the purpose of getting "face time" in front of the boss. There is little transparency in job titles and salary levels, the annual review process is disorganized, and the organization lacks a clear plan for or commitment to staff professional and leadership development. As a result, junior staff who are excellent at promoting themselves and who can align themselves with powerful senior staff usually get the most recognition. There appeared to be little standardization of job titles or job descriptions. Work-life balance is a challenge. Most of the staff I'd worked with who'd been there for several years were at or nearing the point of burnout (although few wanted to admit that publicly).

Pros

The greatest assets of PolicyLink are the incredibly smart, capable, and passionate co-workers doing amazing work for a great cause. It's why I stayed as long as I did. The salary was decent for the nonprofit sector with great benefits and time off.

Cons

The biggest challenge was the flat hierarchy that led to senior management not being able to advocate for their teams' needs. The CEO exhibits founder's syndrome that has caused incredible unhappiness amongst the staff. There's talk of open dialogue, which when it does happen, is immediately or eventually shut down when problems and negative feedback is brought up. Lastly, the "family"-oriented culture prevents ineffective/incompetent staff (both senior and middle) from being let go and resulting in increasing dissatisfaction and talented staff leaving.

Pros

They have a diverse staff from the outside looking in.

Cons

Staff are territorial about their roles, there can be favoritism and unequal treatment, and for this company hierarchy is everything

Pros

Top notch mission driven work, with huge impact across the country. The work is fulfilling and effective. Working here is an opportunity to be a part of big change in this country.

Cons

Terrible work environment. A crazy hierarchical structure that rewards inefficient, lazy employees that ride on the backs of a handful of smart, hardworking, and dedicated staff.