Korn Ferry reviews

3.3

56% would recommend to a friend

(3,884 total reviews)
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Gary D. Burnison

55% approve of CEO

48% positive business outlook

Korn Ferry has an employee rating of 3.3 out of 5 stars, based on 3,884 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Korn Ferry employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Administración y consultoría industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

4K reviews
1.0
May 16, 2020

Just so very bad

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The people on the front line - there's a trench spirit and humour in the madness Global locations Office are nice (but that will go post-covid) I really am struggling now to add to this list

Cons

This place is just about minimising cost (i.e. your salaries and bonuses - this is the biggest cost in the business) and maximising the sales and cash collection. The CEO has a 'God complex', no-one challenges him as he is surrounded by sycophants who are in fear of their own safety. The share price and overall company growth are the only performance indicators that are talked about with any seriousness. The quality of service to clients quickly falls off post-sale as staff are overworked and stretched too thinly (as keeping headcount to a minimum is a concern here) and products are not invested in or updated. There is no genuine concern for staff. They treat them with utter patronising distain. It's weird: they hire clever people and then communicate to them like they are stupid. They just cut or furloughed about a third of the staff. They let some really great Partners and staff go (leaving some very mediocre ones untouched) so they can save money and make more acquisitions. They've cut the pay of everyone here that is left who are already overworked and tired. People just look physically sick and many have stress or mental issues from overwork or long hours. It's just so sad. It has the potential to be so much more than it is but it's just being run into the ground year after year.

2.0
May 28, 2020

Cringeworthy and Unfortunate

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Broad exposure to a variety of clients, fast moving, Korn Ferry brand while diluting quickly in Executive Search still carries name recognition, and some staff and colleagues are wonderful before they to, become disillusioned.

Cons

A truly outdated, unfortunate, shareholder/revenue/billings obsessed culture with lots of lip service and self congratulatory behavior among overly sales oriented professionals. Many staff and leaders are towing company lines and have been indoctrinated over the years into believing what is going on at Korn Ferry is acceptable, just fine, and even reasonable. It is not. It's cringeworthy to hear again and again the issues of workplace impropriety, not to mention the near constant phrase, "all hands on deck and just keep the clients happy and the fees coming in." It's a Harvard Business Case study in the making. Truly difficult to watch. Reminds me of Enron: Smartest Guys in the Room but these are certainly not the smartest guys in the room at Korn Ferry. Literally no raises, yet annual increases in health premiums/employee contributions therefore as you go on with the firm, your take home pay is LESS Meaningless performance evaluations. A truly unprofessional and borderline unethical HR Department with little to no accomplishments to speak of. 401K contribution is laughably terrible

1.0
Jul 10, 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Pay was decent (but stayed stagnant), good benefits, opportunity to work with different people/companies.

Cons

This company is quite frankly the worst experience I could have even imagined. Don't bother reporting any misconduct to HR/Legal because they do not take it seriously if the person it is about is earning the company money. They allow for a toxic workplace and sexual harassment. Complete lack of management. It is a "kiss up and kick down" environment. Extremely hierarchical - you will surely know where you stand and be treated as such. Partners do minimal work but take total credit and treat those in roles under them as less than human. Absolutely terrible culture - its a boy's club. No room for growth no matter how much overtime or extra work you take on. They will tell you the position is not available then hire someone else for the same position a month later. Everyone is fluent in BS and manipulation. Partners will over promise to clients and when those expectations cannot be met (because they are unrealistic) it is the fault of those beneath them for not working a 15 hour day while they are out golfing.

Viewing 25 - 27 of 3,884 Reviews

Glassdoor has 4,784 Korn Ferry reviews submitted anonymously by Korn Ferry employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Korn Ferry is right for you.