I very much enjoyed my years as a Red Cross employee. It's an organization with a lot of heart and hard working people.
Pros
Everyone knows the Red Cross and I was proud to be able to work each day towards the incredible mission of helping people "prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters" both big and small. I've never had a boss who worked so hard and with so much passion and I've worked for several non-profits. Leadership constantly gave me opportunities to learn, grow and shine; I'm so thankful for that. And, at the Red Cross, employees have the opportunity to develop TWO careers - their daily work and their role during a disaster.
Cons
National leadership struggles following each major disaster (9/11, Katrina, etc.). That and our inability to adequately explain to the public what we do creates the opportunity for us to regularly come under scrutiny - sometimes deserved, but mostly not. Too much paperwork and hoops to jump through - lighten it up so we can deliver more services. Reduce unnecessary costs so funds go further withOUT eliminating so many people. The rest of us become exhausted.
