Pros
- Employees are intelligent and friendly. - There are a wide variety of contracts to work on, many of which are interesting, rewarding, and have real impact on health policy. - Acumen has more access and expertise with public health data than other health research contractors. - When properly recognized by management, good work is rewarded with higher pay and accelerated advancement. - Hours are flexible (although often still long) and work environment is very casual. - The CEO is incredibly smart and has ambitious visions for the company. He is a workaholic who is absurdly committed to the company.
Cons
- A lot of teams suffer from poor management. Often managers are chosen based on how long they have been at the company or their project knowledge rather than their ability or desire to support the people reporting to them. - A lot of teams are over-worked. Depending on what projects you work on, you may have periodic crunch times where you have to work 80+ hour weeks. - Good work is often rewarded with more work and responsibilities than is desired until the employee eventually burns out. - The CEO can be very difficult to work with. He is very aggressive, demanding, and has trouble communicating his ideas to others. You need thick skin, patience, and good communication skills to be able to work with him.