@SimonB 'Thank you for the offer, however I'm concerned that I won't be able to perform to my full potential in your environment and therefore currently won't be accepting the offer'
I also think that expressing your concerns about the situation is polite enough. In someways our culture of always trying yo be over polite and not expressing the actual issues is ultimately impolite.
@SimonB Yeh. Offering a short secondment sounds a bit insulting TBH, especially if you applied for the role. A bullet dodged I think.
@intrbiz That is likely what I will go with.
I didn't put much context, but it's same company different team. The HPC role I mentioned before. They turned around and decided to offer a short secondment instead of the role. That, as well as the whole interview process, along with others confirming my suspicions of the managers management style has made me decide I'd rather be less challenged and happy, than doing cool stuff but not enjoying it.