Sorely lacking in company culture, but strong work/life balance
Pros
The group that I worked with at Aon saw the importance of work/life balance and allowed employees the flexibility needed to live full lives outside of the office. I had the ability to work remotely when needed and as a young person who enjoys traveling I very much valued that flexibility.
Cons
When I first joined Aon in NYC the office was dark, drab and lacking in collaborative work spaces. There was no break room, so employees were forced to eat lunch alone at their desks. This spoke volumes to me about company culture, or the lack thereof, and made it difficult to meet people and form professional relationships. Some of these issues were addressed when the move was made to 1 Liberty -- there are now kitchens, lunch tables, and collaborative spaces -- but still culture is lacking. The different Groups within Aon are isolated and siloed, making it difficult to form relationships beyond your immediate team and to explore other opportunities within the organization. This is further exacerbated by decisions which buoy the bottom-line and make Wall St. happy, all at the expense of hard-working employees. For example, in 2018 the decision was made to cancel all holiday parties in the New York office. While 2018 was a strong year financially for the company and the New York office in particular, the focus was placed on trimming budgets and cutting overhead costs at the expense of corporate culture. This results in high turnover, especially in the younger ranks where employees value culture, amenities, and benefits over salary and bonus incentives. Aon needs to recognize this disparity if it wants to continue to grow in the years ahead. Furthermore, the value placed on seniority and rampant corporate politics make it difficult to recognize and reward high achievers and give employees with long-tenure more power than their work product deserves. Again, this results in high turnover and employee dissatisfaction. The annual review process is ineffective and results in managers rating employees in a way that is not reflective of their performance, but instead conducive to a poorly communicated budget and a belief that you must "wait your turn" in order to get the salary or promotion you are seeking (regardless of whether you deserve it). My manager once said that while my work product warranted an outstanding rating, he could not give me the highest rating in my review because those ratings were only given when you were in line for a promotion. Such feedback was disheartening and ultimately supported my decision to leave the organization. While there are many good people within the organization, they need to be given opportunities to advance and voices at the table. Given Aon's size, it's important that the organization continue to seek feedback from its employees and take to heart the suggestions and critiques it receives.