Opinions on Glassdoor review reliability?

McBain

McBain

McBain

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Hello all,

I've been offered a new role at a company that on the face of it sounds solid, good role, package etc. What's concerning me is their pretty poor Glassdoor rating. I wouldn't say I'd base my decision entirely on that, but it's definitely put some doubt in my mind.

Has anyone ever moved to a business with a poor rating and it been OK? In reverse, anyone ever gone to a company with a good rating that has been garbage?

Obviously the bad reviews will be from disgruntled staff but just thought I'd ask here for opinions/experience.

Thanks!
Aaron
 
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McBain said:
Hello all,

I've been offered a new role at a company that on the face of it sounds solid, good role, package etc. What's concerning me is their pretty poor Glassdoor rating. I wouldn't say I'd base my decision entirely on that, but it's definitely put some doubt in my mind.

Has anyone ever moved to a business with a poor rating and it been OK? In reverse, anyone ever gone to a company with a good rating that has been garbage?

Obviously the bad reviews will be from disgruntled staff but just thought I'd ask here for opinions/experience.

Thanks!
Aaron
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I would take it under consideration. If you can try and verify some of the claims. If there's a toxic work environment I'd expect to see a high turnover. You can use linkedin to gauge turnover if you can find a few current and ex employees of the company.

I have moved to company that had mixed reviews and quickly worked out the bad reviews mostly came from one department that was managed poorly the rest of the company was great to work for but there were a disproportionate number of reviews coming from there
 
You've gotta read the reviews themselves really - or take a sample of them if there are lots (including perhaps some new, some old etc.. - has the company improved).

Some negative reviews that don't give specifics can just be disgruntled employees. Also in some places there might be a reason for staff being disgruntled that you're not fussed about or that doesn't affect your job too much etc.. Like if you're going for a developer or data science job but the guys in the warehouse are miffed then perhaps better to look at the reviews by other developers and data scientists.

Similarly, positive reviews can be faked (probs more relevant to smaller companies), or indeed you'll find some companies or sections of companies strongly encourage them - for example getting new joiners to write them after their induction/training period when everyone is super friendly and hyping them up for the exciting career ahead of them etc..

At one company I worked at there were some ridiculous number of short 5 star reviews, they weren't actually fake rather they were all coming from the same office in India - some people had clearly been "persuaded" to write positive reviews.

The 2 or 3 star reviews can be among the most illuminating IME - generally not mindless criticism but flag up legit issues.
 
I don't think it would prevent me from taking a job, maybe if I was choosing between two it could be a deciding factor.

Bear in mind things can change over time too, my previous employer was ranked in the top 10 best companies to work for in the UK 3 years running, rising to top 5 last year, but they didn't make top 50 this year.
 
Thanks all - interesting to read thoughts.

I ended up withdrawing as im pursuing other options that are more appealing. The reviews weren't the sole reason for withdrawing as there were other concerns in play.
 
Two companies i'd loved working for have glassdoor scores around 3. One place which had widespread awful management (across many verticals) and a poor culture had a score of 4.3.

With a bit of cop on, it's easy enough to read between the lines - to the point now I and my peers can now tie review to particular people.
  1. It's clear enough to see which employees have an axe to grind and their review should be taken with a pinch of salt (but not always entirely discounted).
  2. Conversely it's now pretty obvious to me which have been written by HR and shills.
  3. Balanced reviews (I.e. those with pluses and minuses) are usually more trustworthy and factual.
  4. Look for quantifiable factors. If poor work/life balance is a common theme amongst good and bad reviews then........
  5. Bear in mind that you may or may not be insulated from some issues depending on office, team, location, whether your role dept is operational or commercial etc.
  6. Pay attention to factors that show what the culture and management style might be like. Performance monitoring software, intrusive IT policies, favouritism/nepotism are all telling factors.
 
McBain said:
Thanks all - interesting to read thoughts.

I ended up withdrawing as im pursuing other options that are more appealing. The reviews weren't the sole reason for withdrawing as there were other concerns in play.
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I personally wouldn't withdraw it can be seen as rude on your part to request an interview then turn it down, if you haven't responded to you then you're probably fine to withdraw.
 
Gaijin said:
Bear in mind that you may or may not be insulated from some issues depending on office, team, location, whether your role dept is operational or commercial etc
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I think this is especially true in large organisations with federated structures. If I read the reviews from a former employer, some of the commentary is totally alien to my experience (both good and bad), but I can believe they had that experience. For example I never really saw many examples of nepotism, lack of diversity, rude behaviour etc yet it is cited by people in another area of the business with different management hierarchy etc.
 
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