Pros
The national office is in Arlington, VA. Those are the reviews to focus on. The national office is really benefitting from the 5-star reviews of the affiliates across the country; I conjecture if you took away the affiliate reviews, NAMI's overall rating wouldn't be so pretty. The affiliates are absolute gems. The national office is a trainwreck. Pros? You're working for a "name brand" organization. This place carries gravitas on your resume. If you want to work in mental healthcare, and you have the mental fortitude to stick it out for a year or so in a toxic work environment, then go for it. Get this place on your resume. It has helped me acquire other jobs, I will not lie. Another positive, I would say, is there are people who care among the staff. Some. Unsure if they've been fired at this point, but when I was there, I met some great folks who cared about individuals living with mental illness. That was nice.
Kontras
Cons, where to start. As I said, you're signing up for a toxic work environment. Period. There's no way around it. The new CEO came in and really chose violence lol. No idea why he got rid of the managers that he did, but it caused a ripple effect throughout the organization. It's like he cut down the trunk of a tree and then wondered why the branches shriveled up. I kept hearing rumors that people living with mental illness on staff were being treated poorly by HR. I didn't believe it—I couldn't believe it—because of literally what the organization is, but then two women both went out on medical leave for mental health reasons around the same time probably because of pandemic-related stress, I don't know. Then, I watched in horror as one of them was let go a few months after she got back and the other one only lasted a couple of months after her. In the middle of the pandemic. You might think the leave and the dismissals were unrelated, but both women's positions/job functions suddenly weren't needed anymore? After they had both been on staff for years? It was horrifying. In the middle of the pandemic, they were both just eliminated. So much for supporting our community. I've personally experienced extremely poor treatment from direct supervisors but didn't bother going to HR about it. Why would I? HR clearly retaliates. In a similar vein, there is such clear favoritism and nepotism here it's actually laughable. The favorites receive promotions upon promotions while the others can languish in the same position for years. There's nothing you can do to become a favorite, either. You're chosen or not. So, you either experience a ton of career progression here or none at all. Join the staff and roll the dice lol. For your sake, I hope you're feelin' lucky. Team cliques are also alive and well. It's like entering high school all over again. You just know that certain groups are talking about you behind your back. It's just a bizarre place to work. I don't recommend it unless you really need the name brand on your resume.