Poor management running it into ground - Anonymous employee NCFE Employee Review

2.0
Nov 25, 2022
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Working from home Some good benefits

Cons

In recent years I would not recommend NCFE to a friend. The exec team have been allowed to run rampant, making bad business decisions and putting pressure on teams to give them what they want on a minutes notice, regardless of their workload. The CEO is surrounded by yes men who do not hold him accountable for his behaviour - he is constantly late to webinars he hosts, and frequently doesn’t turn up for meetings or events, expecting someone to cover for him at the last moment. Perhaps the most shocking of all is the comments he writes on his linked in - we are the leading AO in health and our CEO is publicly sharing anti vax views online. His comments in one staff webinar “if you don’t like it leave” were effective - people are leaving in droves and a recruitment freeze has meant the rest of us have had to pick up the extra workload. When asked about pay rises, the CEO/exec constantly peddle the same lines: we’re a charity so need to reinvest our money. Why they don’t see staff retention as investment is quite interesting. They also emphasize the bad financial situation they’re in but continue to buy new business to merge with like kids in a sweet shop. NCFE used to be a genuinely nice place to work five years ago however as wages stall and workload and expectations rise, with so many people across the business leaving for our competitors, it seems new leadership is needed.

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NCFE Response
3y
Thank you for taking time to leave your review and we’re glad to hear that our flexible working and benefits package are working for you. At NCFE, we pride ourselves on having strong values and behaviours. Our values are an important element of who we are as a business, and they guide our actions: https://www.ncfe.org.uk/careers/our-values-and-behaviours/ We’re sorry to learn of your perceptions of our Exec team and CEO and would ask that you escalate any valid concerns to our Trustees as per the whistleblowing policy Regarding your views of our recent acquisition of AIQ, this was a decision taken to expand our reach and impact; combining the strengths of both organisations to help even more learners and communities. We encourage all colleagues to talk to us if they have concerns about any area of the business, and we send out engagement and pulse surveys every quarter (with subsequent practical action planning) to ensure every colleague’s voice is heard. You’re also welcome to speak directly with our Executive team at any time on a 121 basis, through our monthly Connection Days or at the Q&A at all colleague events. We also believe it’s important for colleagues to have the opportunity to speak up in a safe and confidential manner and we have a whistleblowing policy in place to enable you to do this, including the opportunity to speak to any of our Trustees to escalate issues. This includes your perceptions of our CEO and Exec, as mentioned above, should you wish to escalate any valid concerns.

Explore other reviews about NCFE

2.0
Jul 19, 2022
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Pros

This is an amazing place to work if you are a junior manager (Team Leader) or below. You could learn loads. The flexibility and benefits are good and the volunteering opportunities are fabulous

Cons

If you want to progress to senior management, avoid this place like the plague. There is no support for senior managers and the atmosphere is ‘look after yourself’ and cut throat. Senior managers are left to fend for themselves and at worst pitted amongst one another with limited resources and the culture is blaming and hostile. Take the learning opportunities and progress to a mid management level - then, in the words of the previous CEO (they’ve been through a few C-suite) - ‘find your happy elsewhere’

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4.0
Jun 15, 2026
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Pros

Inclusive, supportive, friendly, strategic, values-based

Cons

Budgets can be limited, development opportunities

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