Vantaggi
The subsidised meals and snacks.
Svantaggi
If having any semblance of a life after work is low on your priority list, then Foster + Partners is the firm for you. On some projects you will be expected to stay as late as 9-11pm on an average day or 1-3am on a particularly bad day (actual numbers). When I say "expected," your line manager won't tell you outright. You are instead to be put through a kangaroo court of invented grievances if you don't put in your unpaid hours. The practice offers some excellent perks, such as subsidised meals which tend to be very good, and a large outdoor area for coffee breaks etc. You will be expected, however, not to actually take advantage of these on-site facilities. Your movements will be monitored, time spent away from your desk, MS Teams status on "away," etc. Need to use the bathroom? Look over your shoulder first. WFH at your peril. I have met some lovely people at the practice, but certain others will be keen to discuss your performance and aforementioned presence at your desk to your line manager behind your back. You will be privy to none of this, as poker faces abound. Only at your probation review will any of this come to light. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, your somewhat above-average salary is ultimately sourced from some of the most hideous autocratic regimes on Earth. The firm is soaking in Saudi royal family cash, as well as that of various billionaires and despots from across the globe. If ethics are even a partial concern, you couldn't pick a worse architecture firm to work for.