GLG reviews

I really think your experience can be based on the team you're assigned to, however overall most people want to secretly or openly get out. I was under a manager that micro-managed everything I did- not kidding, I had to write out a plan every day with what I was doing each hour because I wasn't hitting my "numbers." I even had a career coach but they just micro managed me even more so. My manager would send passive aggressive emails to myself regarding my clothing and not being prompt on arrival. It felt like they were more against me than on my side and I know others that felt the same with their managers. It is an exhausting, sweat-shop type environment, where they judge you based purely on numbers. You write your numbers on a board to display if you're doing well or not-oh and it's color-coded (so don't have a lot of red by your name!). They will fire you if you don't hit your numbers- which did I mention are entirely based on if a person you tried to recruit, is used for a project. This role is described as a "research" role however the only research you do is scowering LinkedIn for people to recruit; it more closely resembles a sales role. It is a place you stay for a year max and then leave because they weed people out to find their "all-stars." Also, the work/life balance is horrible. You have to ask your manager for permission to leave even if you've finished your work. Expect your day to be from 8:30-6:00 plus a few hours on the weekend. If you want to move around the company, you have to wait a minimum of a year and even then, you're not guaranteed.

For anyone considering a job in Research at GLG, it’s worth mentioning that you’ll find no intellectual stimulation in the day-to-day demands of the job. Though the topics and clients will vary in each request, you’re still essentially doing the same thing 10 times a day, on average. In terms of the hierarchy, this means that associates are typically responsible for the servicing of these clients, managed by research managers who have all but checked out (but are reaping the benefits and recognition of work done by their direct reports). A disinterested manager, coupled with a high turnover rate means that unless you’re extremely lucky when you start, you’re not going to have someone really invested in helping you grow professionally. The minutia of the work is compounded by a stream of new initiatives coming from an executive team throwing uncooked spaghetti at the wall, hoping it’ll stick and incredulous at the suggestion that it might not. Though no doubt meant to impress some standardization on the incoming class of associates, more tenured individuals are left exasperated by trying to meet arbitrary metrics aimed at quantifying an otherwise qualitative business. The reorganization of the business’ goals, as well as the new structure of compensation, has left a lot of people (particularly individuals with a strong track record of superior performance) feeling marginalized and looking for new opportunities.