Pros
The most genuine, honest review I can offer regarding employment at SmithBucklin can be condensed into five words: it is not for everyone. There. The cat is out of the bag; the cards are on the table; the truth has been exposed. Just like black olives on pizza, roller coaster rides and monogamy: working at SmithBucklin may not be the right thing ("fit") for everyone. The intent of saying so is not to trivialize constructive criticism or dismiss legitimate concerns on behalf of former and current employees, but simply to highlight that while SmithBucklin may not be for everyone (for what I believe to be a variety of justifiable reasons) - there are those (who stay and thrive and grow) who truly find their niche and calling in the work that they do on behalf of SmithBucklin and the client organizations they serve. It is my belief, and drawn from my experience at the company, that SmithBucklin is successful because of its people - its passionate, extraordinarily hard-working, dedicated, resilient, talented, tenacious people. I am someone who all but stumbled into association management the way I imagine Max Planck "unintentionally" revolutionized physics - completely "accidental-like on a breeze." And as true as it is that I have been tasked with challenging work at SmithBucklin, it is equally accurate that the rewards and fruit of my (diligent) labor proved to be of significant value. I cannot say that I have not put in long hours (long, coffee-guzzling, hours that were interrupted with grace-saving pizza deliveries, encouraging emails and occasionally blaring the 300 soundtrack after hours for motivation)... but I can say it has been worth it every time (because of recognition, career development, networking opportunities and relationship-building with the aforementioned passionate, extraordinarily hard-working, dedicated, resilient, talented, tenacious people). So while there is merit in the idea that this is not easy work, I have to humbly declare that there is a tremendous amount of knowledge to gain and skills to learn - which, in my opinion, is not always easy to come by. Additionally, and in the good nature of not speaking on behalf of others, I would render the experience I had at SmithBucklin as invaluable. And I would render it so because of the people I met and had the privilege to learn from and work with/for/in the vicinity of. I've grown personally and professionally in my time at SmithBucklin. It was an education and a friendship, and I am better for the experience.
Cons
Demanding environment; occasionally difficult (though not impossible) to master the art of striking a work-life balance.
