McKinsey Glassdoor reviews can be insightful and harsh at the same time. Most of all, though, they're just plain funny. Does McKinsey have its flaws? Absolutely. Do these 1 star McKinsey Glassdoor reviews hold merit though? Hear our take, and then decide for yourself if some of these McKinsey Glassdoor reviews hold kernels of truth that could prepare you for your career at McKinsey.
McKinsey Consulting: 1 Star Glassdoor Reviews YouTube Transcription
Hi I'm Jenny Rae LeRoux, managing director of Management Consulted. And do I have a treat for you today. I have been spending time in the depths of Glassdoor looking at one-star reviews, and today I'm looking at McKinsey. And some of these really sting. You know McKenzie is an amazing place to work. Pretty much one of the most coveted places in the entire universe for people to be employed. And some of these you know there's truth in all one star reviews, but let's just go through them because some of these are amazing. This one, interesting!
Trumped?
As soon as I was identified as voting for Trump it all went downhill. This person's recap of what actually transpired seems kind of disturbing. Probably not actually what went down but anyhow, "I was asked many times who I was voting for in the 2016 US presidential election. And as soon as I finally said Trump, I was isolated, singled out, and eventually ejected from McKinsey." Okay, that's definitely not legal, but also I'm just I'm just really interested in if that's actually what went down. "Discriminating against me because of who I voted for." If that really happened you should file a lawsuit!
But anyhow, also their pros are, "A lot of great things trumped by one bad thing." Gotta love it.
Not Worth It
Another one, "Not worth the branding. I worked at McKinsey and company full-time less than a year. Pros: good brand name, met some cool colleagues," both pretty good pros. "Cons: Sweatshop hours for low pay. Obsessing over extraneous details and PowerPoints when the actual content was fluff." That is true, by the way. And then, "Terrible expense policy." I don't know where they worked having an expense policy where McKinsey in comparison is terrible. You basically expense anything in your life and have it pass through, so I'm not even sure what's going on there.
Decent Name
All right let's look at this one: "Worked at McKinsey and company full-time more than three years. McKinsey is a decent name to have on your resume, but that is probably the only Pro you'll get from this organization." And this is real harsh. "This place is terrible. The work is terrible. The lifestyle is terrible. The management is horrendous. The pay per hour is no better than minimum wage. Zero flexibility. Zero understanding. Zero respect for outside responsibilities. They will lure you in with promises of personal development and impactful work (in quotes), but it's nothing more than a lie to sucker the next batch of recruits they can churn through, to make more money for the partnership. Avoid this place at all costs."
There is a reason by the way why people only stay at consulting firms for a couple of years. That right there, is basically the description of what goes on, anyhow, kind of loved it. Here's the next McKinsey Glassdoor review.
Brand Name
"Pros: Good brand name. The only thing I got after working McKinsey was the brand name on my resume." By the way, everybody at BCG said that they loved the pay. Everybody at McKinsey says they like the brand name. I mean if I had to choose between the two of them, I'm just saying, you know, you might want to think about that. But anyhow, "Cons: I had a terrible experience at McKinsey. I thought I had been doing a great job because I got positive feedback all along. Especially about my analytical skills. However when it was time for my performance review I was asked to look for another company." Yikes!
"As my problem-solving skills needed improvement. When I said that I never got that feedback while I was working there, (which by the way if you ever get that feedback don't say "I never got that feedback", say "awesome, I'd love some specifics about what I can do to improve". "What they said was okay but that doesn't change anything, if we had told you that, you wouldn't have improved anyway." Yikes! That is a real scary situation, but I'm guessing that it probably wasn't just one thing that this person was dealing with.
A Lot Of Travel
Here's another one for McKinsey. "If you like to travel it may be good for you." The first Pro that mentioned travel- kind of interesting. Also, "People judge you all the time." Oh these are the Cons by the way, "People judge you all the time. You have to think twice to ask a question. A lot of traveling." Okay I mean, if it's a Pro or is it a Con, maybe it can be both. It's very existential of us if we think about that. "A company where only extroverts can survive." Ah, that's sad! No stability in your life and no work/life balance. If you want all types of people to join, please value introverts as well." I feel like a lot of these are real therapy for people when they write them. I bet they feel better, you know?
Green
And then here's another one. A one-star. "I've been working at McKinsey & Company full time. Positive outlook: Green. CEO: Green- however doesn't recommend. (odd). Pros: Nice life, a lot of travel." I mean I think if you can say that you have a nice life that's a pretty great review. But this is a one-star because: "Long work time. Busy, very tight schedule."
False Advertising?
And the last one: [so] "This was not the McKinsey advertised. The Pros: The work environment. Snacks. Catered lunches and work events." I mean for anybody guys, that's ridiculous. "Salary." [Okay, amazing.} "Benefits". Also then, "Cons: Lack of care to individual professional development. Disorganized." Not a word that I've heard used about McKinsey, but interesting. "Poor communication at many levels, No transparency. Make your own McKenzie is a company line that could not be further from the truth." That is kind of funny actually. "Mechanical, you feel like you're a cog in the machine. Hierarchy and lackluster management with poor communications skills." Not communication skills, "communications skills".
McKinsey Glassdoor Review Summary
Anyhow all these reviews you guys, as you kind of keep going through these, you know I can keep going there's even more, there's actually more for McKinsey in the one star reviews than some of the other ones. Ultimately it all comes down to the fact that you work a lot. They advertise that before you go in. You work less than banking, but still, a lot. You travel. Fair. You know that before you come in, you're expected to travel 100%, and the environment at McKinsey in particular is very like, work hard and play eventually. But later in life. So just know what you're getting into.
You know, you should definitely not just read the one-star reviews. But some of these have a lot of interesting truth in there. They talk about the reality of how you actually pay attention to what's going on, inside consulting firms and also how you know how to succeed. Have fun!
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