Robert Walters reviews

3.7

75% would recommend to a friend

(2,294 total reviews)
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Toby Fowlston

80% approve of CEO

55% positive business outlook

Robert Walters has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 2,294 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Robert Walters employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Recursos humanos industry (3.8 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews
1.0
Aug 28, 2020
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Some good people remain there and some nice benefits such as fruit basket and private medical

Cons

Where to start?! Resource Solutions used to be a fun and exciting place to work. Over the past few years the company has gone backwards as it has slowly lost key senior members of staff as well as big clients who are tired of the same old routine of ‘over promise and under deliver’. The company as grew very quickly and bit off more than it could handle, and is now paying the price. The company used to be fun with things such as regular drinks, team events, summer drinks etc. With the loss of clients and important members of staff, It has become much more pressurised environment with the removal of fun and an element of bullying and personal agendas. It has become a favourites club i.e. if you are not in favour with certain the Senior Management or your face doesn’t fit, then they won’t care or listen to you - it has become a culture of ‘do as I say’ with little care of new ideas or a different thought – you just get shot down. New senior people have come in and who aren’t of the same calibre and have their own personal agendas to benefit themselves only – and are happy to push anyone and everyone under the bus to achieve this. They promote their friends and reward ineptness. The business is currently a sinking ship and is driven by the rats, with little direction or any form of idea how to get back to where the company was. During this period of uncertainty and difficulties there are numerous amounts of people being made redundant in a ‘right sizing project’. This process has been incredibly poorly communicated and managed, with mixed messages coming from the HR team and Managing Directors. On the rare occasion of any comms being sent, they are so vague and open to interpretation that the company has a get out to change their minds. What they don’t realise is that the people they are loosing do a lot of the leg work and make other look good. What they are left with (with the exception of a few) are people with no idea what to do, are less than useless and would step over anyone to be seen as being productive. Also, be wary of over positive reviews on Glassdoor and similar websites – take them with a pinch of salt. The company asks employees to post positive reviews after they received rewards such as the high achievers lunch to make their overall score better than it actually is.

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Robert Walters Response
5y
Hello, and thank you for your review of working with us at Resource Solutions, although I'm obviously very disappointed by some of your comments. I joined Resource Solutions just a few years ago, and continue to find it the fun and exciting place you describe. Any ambitious individual or business that wants to grow and strive for excellence needs to push and test itself in order to learn and grow. Some might say that's 'biting off more than you can chew'; I would argue it's a case of being bold and unafraid to challenge yourself in order to grow. In the process of doing that, no individual or business will get everything right. But, as in life, you learn by doing and not always winning, rather than by playing it safe and never trying anything new. As a business, we have much to learn, but we can also be proud of a great deal. I am incredibly proud of all those who have worked alongside us over the years, learning, growing and building their careers, with us and with what they have learned from their time with us. I disagree with the idea that we should avoid risks and should instead indulge in navel-gazing when colleagues move on to new challenges. It is often disappointing when people leave our business, but that is the nature of successful businesses in a competitive industry. When a successful and energetic business like ours enters a momentary plateau – or a dip resulting from the unprecedented difficulties caused by the pandemic - it's disproportionate and inaccurate to suggest the ship is sinking. We are not sinking. Our people have not panicked. We are confident that we will emerge from this current crisis as we have emerged from previous ones - stronger and more resilient. While I regret that we, as a business, may not have got everything right recently, our people have done great things, and done them really well. I fully support everyone at our business who has had to make difficult decisions in these difficult times. I have said on many occasions that neither I or our business condone bullying, and I will personally and actively investigate any instances I hear of. As for your comments about Glassdoor reviews - I can only say that we are not alone in asking people to leave a review when they've had a good experience. As you will see from any previous response I have given here on Glassdoor, I welcome feedback, and am transparent in responding to criticism. The suggestion that positive reviews must have been solicited is unfair, unsubstantiated and, frankly, unbecoming. We have much to learn, we are willing to listen, and we support our people to the full extent that we are able. I regret that this was not your experience, but I thank you for your contribution to our business, and I wish you well in your next endeavour. Many thanks, Kirsty Adams (Global HR Director, Resource Solutions)
2.0
Jan 19, 2020

Abusive Environment

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Extensive trainings, it will be good for fresh graduates - The brand is well known, make it easier to market and sell to Clients - Good location - Provide easy-carry surface laptop for each consultants, it makes it look professional when used them to write notes in client's place. - There are good colleagues around, some team members are genuinely good

Cons

- When a consultant is not doing well with their numbers, depending on the team's Manager, sometimes you can hear the Manager shouting at the consultant across the floor. I was very frighten when I witnessed it. It did not only happen once. After the shouting, it was claim that the manager was just "training" her team member and the Directors allowed this to happen. This was not acceptable and made myself question the integrity and values of the company. The shouting did not just include the manager's so called "raising voice" but it was belittling the consultant as a person. I also witnessed a few consultants that left that team because of the stress but the company just blamed it on all the people who left, not the Managers who shouts. - Clients and candidates don't be deceived by the brand, the consultants are taught to only hit their targets, they don't really care what type of candidate they share or the job they introduced, as long they can sell you the job and get their numbers in. - Be prepared to be micromanaged - Be prepared to face colleagues who think highly of themselves and throw you under the bus - Be prepared to face an abusive environment without support of your emotional well being when you are either not a performing consultant or just an average consultant. Only performing people gets to do whatever they want to others, for example, abuse. - No diversity as they only focus on finding like minded people, prepared to be discriminated if you are not like minded with others in the company.

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Robert Walters Response
6y
Thank you for taking the time to leave a review, although I am very concerned about many of the point you raised. Many of the behaviours you’ve described are contrary to everything we stand for as a business, and I would appreciate the chance to speak to you confidentially so that I can get some further details about your experience. Please email me at kimberlyn.lu@robertwalters.com.my at your earliest convenience so that we can set something up. Thank you, Kimberlyn Lu Country Manager, Robert Walters Malaysia
2.0
Jan 3, 2019

Senior Consultant

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Learn a lot about the startup industry, thrown into projects pretty quickly. Always things to do, and you can make more money at this agency then most.

Cons

You were only valued if you were doing well. I saw people thrown out with no warning if they were having a rough quarter, people mistreated in the office, and people clearly the favorites because they billed well. It did not encourage career development. Even though its run by senior management, it operated more like frat house with people regularly getting way too drunk at events. Especially in the bay area, you can easily join a startup that pays way more and where people don't give you side eye for leaving after a ten hour day.

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Robert Walters Response
7y
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. I’m really pleased to hear that you found plenty of opportunities to learn and get involved in projects as well as enjoyed good financial rewards during your time at Robert Walters. However, I’m concerned by the other points you have raised in your review as we really value all our people and believe in supporting them. This starts with creating a positive, professional work environment where everyone is treated with respect. Therefore, I would really appreciate the opportunity to hear more about your experience working with us and understand where improvements can be made. Please don’t hesitate to contact me in confidence at simon.bromwell@robertwalters.com. Thanks, Simon Bromwell, Managing Director – North America.
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