After COVID, there was a big decline in the company.
Many positions were being transferred to India (and this forced layoff is still going on) and this brought a lot of turmoil to the company.
In 2023, I was able to return to the office for a few months, before my maternity leave. I could see that the pros listed before were lost.
1. No more snacks
2. Difficulty in finding a place to sit next to your team, as you would have to book the desk, days in advance.
3. There was a lot of stress and anxiety in the team. The work was increasing and we felt "abandoned". Aware that soon we would be left at home because our work was given to Indian colleagues, to whom we taught the work.
4. Even the manager himself started to be less present and less supportive for the benefit of the team.
5. Too many useless meetings that interrupted our productivity. Vague answers from superiors regarding the future of the company.
I have been on maternity leave since mid-2023 and have applied to return. I was told that no positions were available (not just my previous one). I was not very surprised; again, my HRBP could not give me concrete answers or real support. She told me that in a month, Novartis would let her go home because her role would go "elsewhere". I understood, why she was not very interested in helping me even though I am a new mother with financial problems.
I spoke to my colleagues on my team, and they confirmed that the atmosphere of stress, anger, and abandonment has not changed. On the contrary! Maybe it has gotten worse now.
