Girls Don’t Belong Here! - Global Marketing Manager AstraZeneca Employee Review

Unfortunately after serving AZ through much sacrifice to my weekends & evenings over 10 years, I have had the worst experiences lately as a female & mother. 1. My line manager made my life hell for going off camera during some meetings as I balanced pregnancy & motherhood during a difficult time for my family. AZ seems to have lost its pulse and this is no doubt going to get worse as we look to double our revenue by 2030. 2. Head office attendance is mandatory for 3 days a week. It’s just become a call center where space is limited & many of us are having to folk out for travel, overnight stays, just to put on some headsets and speak to others. Management is all about males here, but white males & non white. As long as you’re a man, and you have the blessing from senior management, effectively your career is mapped out. There is a group of elite men, they just rotate from job to another every 2 years. They are pretty self centered, and toe the line. The human element is entirely missing and the treatment of women is pretty awful, 4. Being recognized by management is the key aim here. So as long as you deliver a big piece of work, preferably commercial, and manage up, you can kind of ignore the day to day mundane stuff. Focus on your self and personal branding & you will be fine. Focus on teamwork and you’re going nowhere. Trust - please do not trust anybody in the AZ UK organisation. If you’re getting married, or moving house, or reading a new qualification eg Masters. Please keep discussions about these to an absolute minimum & don’t spread. Why? Because when your manager and colleagues want to turn on you they will Hoover up everything and hit you with a HR complaint. High performing managers in the UK have been ousted by their teams and vice versa. A toxic culture devoid of trust has really killed what used to be an inspiring place to work. Fast Track - the toxic culture has been fueled by the unspoken fast track development path. So if you play golf, or join a clique, you will be on the fast track path. If you don’t join a clique or have a sponsor, then I’m afraid you’re stuck! Lastly, the workload at AZ is heavy beyond just words. The human resource is insufficient for the work. The ethos here is “ just get it done” and your line manager is usually unhelpful, or unqualified. Compliance is a distant consideration and as long as they can find a body or willing volunteer smart risks are taken regularly, but at the cost of the employee if all goes wrong.