Firm as a whole good - Marketing department not so good - Marketing Executive EY Employee Review

3.0
28 Mar 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Generally will give good employee benefits, subsidised gym membership, bike scheme contribution pension. There are also a lot of networks within the firm that you can join. Depending on which area you work in, salary is decent. There are good people in the firm that will help you achieve your personal and career development.

Cons

I worked in the UK&I Marketing department. When I joined I loved it, the atmosphere was great, the team was great. Then there was a change of leadership, and everything got a bit rubbish. No matter how hard you work, unless you are necessarily brown nosing then you will not get recognition. People who were down right thick seem to get all the exposure just because they were brown nosing. They demonstrated no actual successful work, were repeated getting other people to do their work and taking full credit for it and couldn't get to grips with the basic systems yet still managed to get promoted. It got to a point where I hated being there because of the amount of clear idiots in the department who just keep creating more work from all the mistakes they made, and the refusal of management to accept that the department was full of morons. One in particular who only got the job because of their connections, but who repeatedly is messing up the most basic of tasks such as sending emails to clients, putting the firm at risk of Data Protection regulations. Not to mention how they screw over returning mothers and those who will be going on maternity leave. After repeatedly asking for more challenging work, broadening my skills and unsuccessfully applying to an internal role, only to be told it had gone to someone external because I did not have digital experience (which we weren't allowed to get because there was a dedicated digital team), I had the last straw and got out of there. I found out after I had left that my senior manager had been blocking other managers and senior managers from using me when they needed help, and telling them that I was too busy. Even though I was bored out of my mind and asking for more things to do.

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5.0
21 Jun 2026
Anonymous intern
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Amazing work culture I love it

Cons

I wouldn't say anything honestly

5.0
21 Feb 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

1. You will have a very hard time not falling in love with every single person you meet there. 2. Seriously, you will meet your soul mate(s) there. 3. Prestigious and looks great on the resume. 4. Your brain will grow a thousand times more powerful. 5. Forces you to conquer your fear of public speaking. 6. Fun team bonding and lifelong friends. 7. Stepping stone to high paying jobs. 8. Helps you work on perfecting your charm. You will learn from the most charming people how to really get people to like you. 9. HR really cares. 10. Big support network (IT, creative services, etc.). 11. Teaches you to be calm and in control.

Cons

OK, I'm going to be discussing all the taboo things, and there are a lot of them. In spite of these cons, I still admit it's worth a five star rating. 1. High performers are "designated" (you have very little control over your rating) by the partner group (can be a pro if you get selected. Seriously, I have worked with some of the supposed "fives" and they are not any different than my threes and fours. 2. Quality is extremely low. Sometimes I felt like I was working at McDonalds and not a professional services firm. The emphasis is on getting through work as fast as possible and expectations for quality are not realistic. 3. EY has a very hard time firing bad employees. If you get stuck with one it can be a nightmare. 4. EY has a heavy emphasis on wasting time. For example, there are lots and lots of checklists which have no value that you have to fill out. Also, they wasted money and time on creating "Canvas" which is literally slower and more awkward than the previous workspace tool, GAMX. There is a heavy emphasis on "reinventing the wheel" and fixing problems that aren't broken with even worse solutions. Instead of wasting money on useless tools, that money could have been spent on your employees in the form of compensation. Like I said, EY is really focused on attempting to look as though value is being created when in fact it is not. 5. Lots of meetings. Appearances are very important. 6. Employees on global 360 accounts get better treatment. 7. Some employees (executives mostly) tend to overemphasize how important this work is. Let's face it, if it was really glorious work then we would have action figures. 8. Looks are very important. Seriously, if you are a girl, you will get promoted based on how hot you are (the quality of your work is largely unimportant). If you are a guy, you are treated a little better but there is still a sexist undercurrent in the environment. This is advice you won't get from HR obviously, but that doesn't mean it isn't true. 8. You will be forced to eat hours. 9. Your ethical compass will start to get weaker. 10. You will get a little cynical. 11. Lots of driving and travel. 12. "Family men" and married couples with children are more likely to be promoted. If you want to be a partner, you have to be married (few exceptions). 13. You will work on vacations. 14. Loss of relationships with family and friends. 15. Some backstabbing and credit-stealing (but not very common). 16. Comp is below market but that's to be expected. 17. Employee retention is not something management is interested in. This makes you replaceable and expendable (yes even as a manager, unless you have been "designated" as a high performer by the partner group).

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