Pros
I worked on an operational excellence programme at a number of UK sites and met many competent, enthusiastic, hard-working people who wanted to make a difference and provide a good service to customers. They were generous with their time and in providing information we needed to try to improve processes and performance. I was genuinely impressed by the knowledge and professionalism of many of the underwriters and technical experts.
Cons
Other contractors commented that the RSA culture was "like the public sector". I said, "No, it's like the public sector was 25 years ago". Poor decision making, lack of willingness to take responsibility or be held accountable for performance, lack of transparency about activities that were going to have a major impact on people's livelihoods. Muddled management lines, a plethora of "systems", and poor use of the key systems that could have supported improved performance. When you see people wheeling trolleys loaded with paper files from A to B you wonder if this really is the 21st century.
