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American Geophysical Union

Engaged employer

Work here until you can find a better job - Anonymous employee American Geophysical Union Employee Review

1.0
Feb 29, 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Depending on who your Director is, this could be a good job for you. A few Directors look out for their employees, making sure they get the salary and work load they deserve. Various committees work hard to create events that get people mingling and add some fun to your work day (Art Committee especially), so that is a plus.

Cons

-Petty competitiveness among colleagues. It is very difficult to get anything done because there is so much competition between departments. There are too many egos that will undermine projects if it doesn’t fit their needs exactly. -Human Resources. Changing positions and salary is very difficult, and HR has often low balled employees in the past to save the company money and keep expectations low. I saw it many times while I was there and experienced it myself. -High turnover rate. The high turnover rate means a lot of stress on the people who remain behind, and tasks are passed off to random people who are not trained to handle them properly. The Directors do not support the remaining staff to be able to handle this work and just expect them to get it done. -Not enough pay and poor work-life balance. You have to work long and hard hours to be recognized, and even then you still won’t get the salary you deserve.

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American Geophysical Union Response
10y
Our retention rate is actually on the high-side at 83% (the range is typically 70%-85%), and conversely our voluntary turnover is low. As noted by another reviewer, we can do better on cross-training so that vacancies are better managed during the transition, and we are working on that. HR and Directors work together on compensation to ensure fairness and competitiveness: HR does not decide on hiring salaries or the increases that come with promotions in a vacuum. In 2015, 18% of the staff was promoted or transferred to new roles that provided for professional development. Well over half the staff received spot bonuses in 2015 from their supervisors in appreciation of their work and how they live out our values.

Explore other reviews about American Geophysical Union

5.0
Oct 1, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Compelling mission that is both inspiring and motivational. Above-average salaries, great benefits. Co-workers who are dedicated to AGU goals and live AGU values. Permanent CEO is open to feedback from all staff, holds open office hours, is transparent. She also devotes time to building good relationships with our volunteers and reminds them about the achievements of the hard-working staff. Government actions have meant lower revenue but she has done a great job growing our international connections.

Cons

Like many nonprofits, AGU is feeling the pain of government actions (i.e. member scientists getting fired and reduced grants going to those who employ our members). That has resulted in staff reductions that hurt - personally and for everyone else’s workload. There are limited promotion possibilities because of few vacancies in upper management.

1.0
Feb 27, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Pay is competitive Fridays off during the summer Flexible

Cons

CEO and upper management are looking out for themselves Too heavy organization - number of VP’s is greater than some departments. People fired or laid off at lower levels and the work has to be absorbed by people who are already overloaded Several bosses are very poor people managers. Their style is borderline abusive and they are bullies and they retaliate if you speak up. Culture of fear is rampant in the organization. Opportunities for promotion are non existent - unless you are able to do some serious brown nosing to senior management. Someone need to analyze the meteoric rise of several individuals in a very short amount of tine

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