Pros
- Pays higher in compared to other non-profits. This is owing to the ticket size of the grants sanctioned to Dasra. - Offers some high-level perks e.g. great coffee roasts from Blue Tokai, Friday meals, a decent book collection in the library, spacious office space with a lush balcony space to work in the open (until covid took over. The organization also engaged in composting and other recycling practices), parking space, on-the-house buddy lunch for new joiners. - One can choose to work 8.30 AM to 5.30 PM to beat rush our traffic in trains or on roads. And, also follows a trust-based check-in/out timings plus sick leave policy. - (Somehow) Manages to attract a good mix of people with varied experiences. This allows to meeting and learning from different individuals
Cons
- Roles and responsibilities are assigned in a haphazard, non-transparent and discriminatory way. Appraisal system while on-paper seems robust, in practice, it is fraught with biases, subjectiveness, and agenda-driven. These convoluted system means that one is in for many dogged years of meaningless work and no real advancement in career. - HR system is broken and serves no real purpose to address challenges faced by employees - A highly bureaucratic system of decision-making - During my three year tenure, the company had pivoted its organization structure three times and shifted its strategic goals based on the discretion of a few top-level leaders - Top-level leaders either choose to remain ignorant or knowingly avoid structural problems within the organizational system - While the leaders may preach or portray that women empowerment and gender equity are of utmost importance, in practice it does the exact opposite. In fact, I was once made to feel belittled about my attire and told to dress in "western formals" for meetings and not in "Indian formals". I've also been told that not to wear certain clothes because the "office staff can see". - To keep adding to this list is exhausting. Hence, I will end it here by mentioning that there is no or very little tangible action that is leading to the achievement of the company's vision, which goes something like build an India where a billion people thrive with dignity and equity.