Egon Zehnder Reviews

Pros

My Office Manager (direct report) was always happy to help with any little question I had. The rest of the EA team was also helpful when they had time, and gave great advice on how best to communicate with clients. I felt like I was part of a really great team. The consultants I assisted treated me with respect.

Cons

I ended up leaving because I realized there was no where for me to go upward. Once an EA, always an EA here. When I was there, the EA team was short staffed, so I had to assist 2-3 consultants at a time with no pay raise or bonus. Though they promised to bring on more EAs, they never did before I left. Work/life balance was tough to maintain. Missing a day being sick or traveling was difficult to come back from because the inbox would be nuts! The company takes on anyone who can afford them, including oil and tobacco companies. This was a big con for me.

Pros

Opportunity to become involved in projects - heavily Impressive portfolio of clients

Cons

Work life balance is not the best People are underpaid for their roles Not the most inclusive environment

Pros

- Excellent onboarding program and internal support for new hires. - It's usually a 1:1 relationship with consultants. - The structure is reasonably flat and people in the Chicago office are treated with respect. Most seem to genuinely get along and enjoy one another's company. - The comp is good, benefits are excellent, and work-life balance is a real thing for EAs, provided you're effective at your job and reasonable about setting limits--though not everyone is. - This is not a traditional admin job where you can get by with just calendaring, answering the phone, etc. The work is fast paced and requires a lot of project management and relationship building. - There's usually an opportunity to build a real partnership with your consultant if you have the desire to do so. - Researchers tend to be younger and work their butts off. Consultants are all former execs or strategy consultants, most with advanced degrees. EAs tend towards the more senior level, but there's a range. These three groups work as a team to manage searches and assessment projects. - It's a diverse group in terms of gender, race, outlook, etc.

Cons

- For EAs, there's not a clear path into research, and essentially no path into consulting (see description of consultants above). It's not that EAs can't become researchers (I personally know a few who have), but you have to make your intention known, demonstrate your abilities, set stretch goals for yourself, and build internal demand. This is not really a "con" for me, as I prefer the work-life balance of being an EA, but some people might find it limiting. - There are big differences between offices in terms of culture and employee satisfaction, which is one of the consequences of the flat structure.

Pros

Nice offices, good benefits, stocked kitchen

Cons

They work their EA’s to death! There is no work life balance. Taking a day off feels more like a punishment because when you return you will be swamped with emails and work.

Pros

The Chicago office is nice and at a very centrally located. Some practice groups are better than others.

Cons

There is no room for true career growth on the research team, from the ID team all the way to the associate and principal level. If you are considering a job here on the research team, I strongly urge you to reconsider and apply to a Spencer Stuart or Deloitte if you're really considering consulting. It is not a good environment and very hard to transfer your work experience (making powerpoints all day) to another job or company. No commitment to diversity at all. Really obvious when you look around the room and it is a miracle we have not been sued yet. Several researchers in all the offices have been "let go" or fired - usually women or people of color because they weren’t properly mentored, onboarded, or weren't a part of certain cliques.