Not such a great place to work - Anonymous employee AstraZeneca Employee Review

Your experience in AZ will largely depend purely on the department you are in. I have heard some people very positive about the opportunities and development. For me personally, I would say the company talks the talk, but does not walk the walk. I have had managers say to me "You cant apply for a new role in the first 12 months"... What they dont say of course that this is true - until they need you to move earlier, then they will move you in the first few months no problem. The worst experience I have had around career development is when a manager said "It is unrealistic to expect a career development conversation in the first 12 months". Remember that tag line when you come in for interview... AZ want to play to win - but not for yourself. There are also a large number of roles where no career development can be given. There are huge blockers in the organisation for a number of people (unable to be promoted becuase their boss is more than one job grade above them), and the company is not honest with people coming in to work if they are in a role that is "isolated". Finally there are a number of roles - created for the organisation as "individual contributor roles", where no thought has been given to a career beyond the role.