Terrible culture - Anonymous employee AstraZeneca Employee Review

2.0
Jun 9, 2025
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Pay and reward is significantly better than non-pharma

Cons

The culture is the worst I’ve ever experienced in any organisation, by some way. It is individualistic, anti-collaborative and relentlessly inhuman. There is a shocking lack of accountability and rampant ‘slopey shoulder’ syndrome. Advancement and preferment is driven by favoritism - either you’re on the good list or you’re not. If not, your time is limited. The CEO communicates regularly about business performance. As he should. But he literally never communicates about anything else. This is most glaringly obvious when it comes to the company’s culture. His silence on this speaks volumes. The ability to do good work is further hampered by the lack of a coherent IT strategy. There’s a bizarre willingness to let a thousand flowers bloom and an internal market that drains business area budgets with no accompanying accountability for how the $$$ are spent. A shocking experience to have worked there.

Explore other reviews about AstraZeneca

5.0
Jun 25, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
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Pros

Good products, great oncology pipeline

Cons

Global leaders moving to US that have limited understanding of US environment

5.0
Apr 22, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I imagine this is very dependent on line management but I find my team and supervisors to be true champions of a high performing and highly compassionate work culture. I find my work challenging and rewarding, and have had opportunities to learn and grow and be rewarded and recognized for my output. No job is perfect but I’m truly happy to work here and at a time when AZ is truly rising like a rocket.

Cons

Like any massive global corporate entity, things can sometimes move slowly and it can be challenging to navigate a high number of constantly evolving priorities and initiatives. That being said, AZ is very clear about its north stars and values which makes it possible to prioritize work that has the most impact and alignment with the company’s ambition and business prerogatives. 60% office attendance policy is also a bit funny when oftentimes I am on Teams calls with colleagues sitting in other areas of the world.

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