Pros
I've been with NATS for 12 years now - and it's been exciting from day 1. I've seen the company evolve from being wholly government owned to the balanced commercial and regulated organisation it is today. Whilst safety has always been at the core of everything NATS does - it's been exciting seeing the Leadership team take it into new commercial areas - in particular the recent investment in Searidge Technologies the Digital Tower company. As an employee - I've always found NATS to be a company keen to invest in its people. They actively support training and mentoring and the internal opportunities for going on secondments in different parts of the business or even moving jobs internally are very good. I've read some comments about the Business IT - but I find that interesting - as compared to my previous companies - I've found the IT to be pretty good and am aware of a project underway to update current systems with the latest industry leading cloud offerings - so I see a company willing to invest there too. I'm based at the Whiteley HQ but also spend time at the Swanwick Centre and both sites are impressive. Whiteley has an excellent shopping village with top brands, restaurants, cinema and leisure facilities (not to mention the woods for walking). I drive to work - and we have on site parking but I have heard the public transport options aren't great. However NATS does operate a staff bus that goes to and from main train stations to help. After 12 years, I'm still here, still engaged, interested and evolving as a professional. The package is good, the environment is good, the people are great - I'd recommend it.
Kontras
There are those that like progress and embrace change, and those that are naturally less keen, critical and skeptical- and NATS has a healthy mix. Those resistant to change often raise good reasons and rational. But as somebody who embraces progress - it can be slow and frustrating to work through the necessary channels to bring about improvements in an area. I suspect this is just a consequence of working in a large, intelligent and safety first (thus risk mitigating) company.