A good company to work for, but held back by office politics and outdated attitudes
Pros
- Good job stability - Decent holiday allowances - Recently improved / expanded flexible working options - Decent scope for career progression, though this is dependent on which department you work in - Company is making efforts to improve in terms of diversity and inclusion. Some areas are still in their infancy but working conditions for LGBT+, people of colour, people with disabilities, neuro-divergent people, carers and new parents have all improved. For people interested in advocating for any of that there are internal networks they can get involved in. Those same networks are available for support or advice if any does experience/witness any discrimination - Head office has recently had a makeover and looks very nice, the central Cardiff location is very convenient - Line management are generally very good, the vast majority are on the side of the people working under them and are very supportive and are proactive in trying to improve things for their teams - Culture is generally friendly and there's a good atmosphere in most teams. Lots of team players and a people with a good collaborative attitude - Good staff benefits. The staff mortgage is especially good, I wouldn't have been able to afford my first home without the low deposit requirement and low interest rate offered - In the IT department there are a lot of talented and experienced people, a particularly good place for new starters as there are regular training opportunities and scope to partner up with more experienced people and learn from them. PBS also sometimes run "academies" and will take on people with little/no experience and train them up from scratch. They will support staff in achieving official certifications and will fund it.
Cons
- Execs are far removed from the realities of the work place. Constantly behind the times - Overreliance on expensive consultants, even for cases where we have the expertise is already in the company - IT change is stifled by old fashioned attitudes from some management. Half the 'cons' in other reviews on this site are about our outdated systems/processes/technology, and they're right. It’s frustrating as there is the drive, ability and knowledge already at PBS to change this but experts are rarely listened to or given the freedom to make real improvements - An absurd amount of office politics - There are a few individuals in upper management who are largely responsible for PBS being slow to change but they are so embedded, and wield such a disproportionate amount of power, it feels impossible to improve the culture - Salaries start low (but there is scope for improvement)
