Grey Group Reviews

Pros

The people are great and there is always something different going on everyday. The clients which Grey works for are also some of the biggest multinationals.

Cons

The atmosphere is a bit relaxed and the completely open-plan arrangement is not for everyone. There could also be a bit more feedback from managers.

Advice to Senior Management

The management at Grey London were very good at their job and were always seen to be giving advice and participating in day to day activities.

Pros

It's a job. Some nice people to work with.

Cons

Small clique run this agency. More BS then many agencies, management don't practise what they preech and HR is invisible. No professional development opportunities.

Advice to Senior Management

Get a regional CEO who has a clue about the business and a London CEO with some charisma. Don't screw the crew. Open your eyes and get out your the bubble.

Pros

Big network of agencies and all the benefits of the big group WPP and opportunity to work for big brands such as Mercedes and P&G.

Cons

Not the best agency in Brazil, with hard roots on the traditional advertising and not so easy to sell good ideas.

Pros

working in good a environment. is fundamental to surviving a 8 hour day. The people are pleasant which creates a pleasant working atmosphere

Cons

You feel like a fish in a bowl. No privacy so it is distracting

Advice to Senior Management

Give employees a chance to move around in to different accounts in the company

Pros

Grey is on a new business winning STREAK! It's been winning so much new business that staffing accounts properly has been slow, and there are always tons of open positions across the agency. It's a good feeling to be working at an agency that is doing so well, and has so much momentum.

Creatively, Grey has gotten a lot better than where it used to be. I think the strength of the agency still lies in planning and strategic account leadership, but creative has risen to meet the strength of the account side. The great thing about Grey is that there is a lot of collaboration between account and creative - account people aren't just bag carriers. Account input and guidance on creative is not only acknowledged, but sought after.

I LOVE the people that work here. Having worked at 3 other agencies, I can honestly say that the people I've met at Grey are some of the smartest, most down-to-earth, hard workers I've ever met. And I've definitely made some lifelong friends in the process.

The new building is great - it's in a fantastic location catty-corner from the Flatiron building, and in the same building as Eataly. Tons of restaurants and bars around to go to for lunch or happy hour after work. There's also an amazing roof top deck that they just finished late last year. Looking forward to more events up there.

They have a pretty sweet Christmas party in the office every year, with open bars, catered food throughout the agency, and a photo booth and DJ.

Most Account people AS and up get laptops. Primarily Lenovo Thinkpads, which are great, but VP's and up get to choose Mac's if they'd like. Most AE's down get Lenovo desktops. AS's and up also get company BlackBerry's.

Most, if not all teams, have Group Assistants that help book your travel and do your expense reports, which is nice to have one less thing to worry about.

You also can pretty much order any office supplies that you need, which is nice, because I love office supplies!!!

Grey offers some basic training courses (i.e. writing skills, presentations, etc.) which can be helpful for the junior level employees.

Cons

While the new space is great, there is ZERO privacy - as an account person, you basically sit in a completely open cube and stare at your co-workers all day long. Sometimes it's really hard to concentrate, and you literally get interrupted throughout your day by your direct reports asking you questions. It gives you less of an ability to prioritize.

As with most big agencies, you need to negotiate hard upfront, because raises are minimal at best. I haven't heard of account people at my level receiving bonuses, whereas at my previous agency, which was a lot smaller, I got bonuses and a significant raise based on performance both years I was there.

I've noticed over the past few months that a LOT of people have been leaving the agency, I'm assuming primarily for more money, but likely for a different type of experience. For an agency that's doing so well, and has so many varied accounts, Grey is still very silo'd, meaning, it's hard to rotate from one group to another (i.e. most of the P&G folks rotate/promote within that group, same with healthcare, etc.) The EVP's that manage the different groups obviously don't want to lose talent they like to another group, so it's hard for young account people to rotate easily between groups and get that varied experience, which is needed for their career development.

For some reason, the benefits are quite expensive...the employee contributions are basically double what I was paying at my old agency.

Your happiness and hours are really dependent on your team/boss. Grey is somewhat known for having a micromanaging culture. I think part of it has to do with the fact that AD's and AS's are younger here - they get promoted quickly (with a smaller raise vs. having to bring someone in from the outside), and may not have the same experience level as people at other agencies. Higher levels (SVP's, EVP's) may be more hands on then they are at other agencies.

Another major downside to Grey is figuring out how to rotate to another account, when the time has come. You basically have to interview with the other groups, as if you were interviewing for a new job. Having gone through this process, I can say first hand that you definitely DO NOT get preference over outside candidates, which is a little insane if you ask me. There could even be the possibility that you can get laid off if you work on an account that was lost, and there are other open positions at the agency, if the hiring teams don't want to hire you. I understand that nobody should be forced to hire anyone they don't want to hire, but there has to be some consideration to the fact that an employee has been working for the company, and should be given some preference.

Advice to Senior Management

REWARD YOUR EMPLOYEES!!!!! For an agency that's doing so well, consider better raises, performance bonuses, etc. to keep your employees happy and fostering a culture of loyalty.

Spend the money that you're spending on happy hours and guest speakers on paying your employees better. I'm sure everyone would appreciate that more.

Find a way to implement a better rotation policy. There are enough accounts and brands to work on at Grey, that everyone should be able to more easily rotate between the different groups.

Pros

Compensation was good (before they starting laying people off)
Clients in general were excellent
Pockets of talented managers, very good middle and lower levels in account management

Cons

Too many evil people with motives

Advice to Senior Management

Get rid of the rotten eggs

Pros

Variety of work, with some freedom to pursue creative projects. Some excellent, talented and hard-working colleagues who deserve better.

Cons

Staff at the London agency inludes a high proportion of bullshitters who can sound plausible but don't really know what they're doing. Management in US and UK ranges from lacklustre to frankly appalling, from the top down to mid levels. Grey has suffered from being assimilated into the faceless behemoth WPP: the group management seems to consist entirely of bean-counting cyborgs who have no real interest in nurturing the company.

Advice to Senior Management

Sack yourselves and appoint outside experts to hire your replacements.

Pros

Great environment to get your feet under you.

Cons

Don't expect to be compensated or appreciated. Fall in line and keep quiet. Shine and you may get a smile, but otherwise, just keep the lights on.

Advice to Senior Management

Reward those that go the extra mile and work to make the agency better. Find a way to get people excited about winning business and being an agency ambassador.

Pros

Good Hours, great time off
Great People
Company has come a long way in last 5 years
Better culture, new management style, good Chief Creative
Lots of big accounts

Cons

Management
No room for growth or promotion
Raises inconsistent
Favoritism at times
HR does not have great reputation, Benefits staff is better
Expensive benefits package

Advice to Senior Management

More concrete review process, consistent raises. Less favoritism

Pros

Great people and benefits. I loved working here. I would go back any day. It's the leading agency in its industry. The execution of the Pantene campaign has been beyond awesome!

Cons

Compensation is lower than market rates. I wish the office was located in a better part of the city. Sometimes lifestyle is sacrificed for growth since account managers are too keen.

Advice to Senior Management

Think about compensation again. You should also think more about work and life balance. Keep up the good work overall!