Commendable mission, horrendous senior management. Keep away! - Anonymous employee Global Reporting Initiative Employee Review

GRI has been a staple of sustainability reporting for 25 years, but its relevance is threatened by terrible management that fails to address the changing global landscape. For the past two years GRI has been subjected to the whims of its latest executive team, specially its CEO and his inner circle. Their absent strategy, poor sustainability knowledge, and lack of interest in understanding GRI as an organization, paired with their 'business first' motto, has accelerated the decline of the organization. Teams are targeted and left in worse state and with fewer resources than before, which results in high attrition and no continuity on projects. Teams are then blamed for not meeting outrageous targets. For an organization whose sole product is supposed to bring transparency in the name of sustainability, the executive team seems to reject transparency and accountability as if their life depended on it. The supervisory board seems to do nothing to keep them in check, either. Their expenses come off as excessive (constant business class travels), with some very clear instances of nepotism and constant antagonistic behavior towards staff they do not favor. They seem to love implementing changes for the sake of it, whilst not presenting metrics or results clearly to staff. There is an air of populism whenever staff is addressed as if we are not aware of the issues the organization is facing, and dealing with such issues on the daily. There is rarely a discussion that is not adorned with platitudes and empty promises, while failing to meet expectations of leadership. In reality staff would appreciate sincere discussions about ongoing challenges. As an employee, do not expect recognition or ownership for projects, or even ask for career progression: there is none. GRI prides itself in 'allowing' staff to develop their career, but in practice this means zero guidance and zero opportunities to grow within a role, or even a regular progression: no milestones, no nothing. HR plays a big part in these deficiencies, they work with archaic methods and assumptions, gatekeep opportunities, lack processes, and change policies on a whim, always to the detriment of staff. Pressure from the executive team, and the constant changes in targets and demands for new KPIs that seem to come out nowhere throughout the year, make every day work extremely reactive. Remuneration does not fare any better at GRI. Even for an NGO, pay is embarrassing, especially for support staff. There is no transparency either in understanding why some executives make 10 times the salary of support staff in a not for profit mission led organization. Expect compensation discussions to be either shut down quickly, or avoided. GRI has great and diverse people in its workforce, mostly in support roles; expect very little diversity in senior roles. Its strongest asset is staff that against all odds, and despite its executive team, still drive and support the production of sustainability reporting standards. It should not be this way, and it’s a shame there is no accountability or hope for change, but avoid this organization if you wish to work in a motivating environment with decent compensation. Oh, watch out for some fake reviews around here, potentially executive team mandated. They are very easy to spot ;)