As a supervisor, you will have 30-40 direct reports. The pay is the lowest in the industry. You get no training, and only the favourites get to go to maybe one conference every 5 years. You have NO work life balance, and are expected to work many weekends and nights. Managers are equally stressed, because they bend over backwards to look good for the directors. They can’t help you because they have no time, and often have only been in the role for a short time. Managers often don’t have the authority to do anything without the approval of the director. Support teams are no help, and are often focused on looking good, rather than doing a good job. As you get into the senior managers and directors, don’t expect support, as they are focused on getting the promotion to VP. Politics is a big focus - watch out for hidden alliances, and people who will try to look good at your expense. Some directors will throw you under the bus without a thought. VPs seem to mostly care about keeping costs down, and hitting their bonus targets. If you are looking for transparency, forget it. Decisions are rolled out without any context, or explanation. In summary, Lifelabs has a borderline toxic work culture, is inward looking, and has incredibly high work loads. You are better off focusing your efforts at public health or other private labs.
