UNICEF reviews

3.8

71% would recommend to a friend

(1,361 total reviews)
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Catherine M. Russell

68% approve of CEO

56% positive business outlook

UNICEF has an employee rating of 3.8 out of 5 stars, based on 1,361 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The UNICEF employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Non-profit e ONG industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

1K reviews
3.0
Jul 10, 2014
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great exposure to new ideas, people, and child protection issues from both field visits and headquarter involvement gives you a chance to see how human rights operates on the ground.

Cons

It is incredibly bureaucratic and often does not value national staff for their expertise, even if staff are as qualified, or even more qualified, than international candidates.

5.0
Jun 23, 2014
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

It gives you exposure to diverse international cultures, issues and creative ways for solving issues. Time-off and flexible working arrangement policies exist.

Cons

As a not-for-profit organization, there are no monetary bonuses. There is so much to do, one tends to work through lunch and long hours.

3.0
May 28, 2014
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great Mission, long history of working for children around the world, largest field presence among UN agencies. in many countries, UNICEF is THE "partner of choice" for children related programs and projects. Many highly committed staff who work really hard for the organization's mission.

Cons

A huge bureaucratic beast - most of the processes and procedures haven't kept up with the changing landscape of time and development world. HR function is the worst. Slow, inefficient and HR posts are held by people who have been with organization for too long with waning motivation and interests in making thing s more efficient and helpful for people. Most managers are promoted from their technical positions who may or may not necessarily have ANY management skills or background. Poor management is rampant but interestingly, once you make it to manager level, especially to Representative or Deputy Representative level, you can't be fired. If a Rep messes up in one country, there's no consequence, s/he is just moved to another country, same Rep job... No accountability whatsoever. Technical staff, especially mid-level end up working like donkeys with little or no career development path. It's still a boys, medical doctor club in most offices. There's no mechanism to provide feedback. If you challenge management or disagree with the direction, there's no culture for healthy debate or discussion. Nobody wants to rock the boat and lose the job (they'll find a way to "abolish" your job if they don't like you) so people end up staying but miserable and nobody wins.

Viewing 1315 - 1317 of 1,361 Reviews

Glassdoor has 2,526 UNICEF reviews submitted anonymously by UNICEF employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if UNICEF is right for you.