Would not recommend to new grads or younger staff - Designer DLR Group Employee Review

1.0
Apr 24, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

-Good support for getting your license -Lots of office locations

Cons

-You aren’t valued as an employee, you are seen as a person in a seat and replaceable. This is made very clear during layoff seasons. -You don’t move up based on your project work or even your annual reviews. Promotions, raises and bonuses are heavily influenced by who you are friends with in leadership and how well you play corporate politics - Company has long term relationships with corrupt clients and refuses to damage or end this relationship despite internal employee outrage when this was shared. Multiple articles have been released about this incident and despite outrage they are continuing this work. I highly recommend googling this company before working for them as they lie about this during the interview process. -Have to pay to park at work -Process for receiving associate and principal titles is a popularity contest and not based on your actual contributions. -Regularly expected to work unpaid over time and project staffing is very inconsistent and unorganized. -Many people are underpaid and raises are percentage increases vs performance based. -Culture of Dallas office is extremely draining and hypocritical. Younger staff being held to higher standards than leadership. (Example - holding younger staff back salary wise due to not having a license while having multiple unlicensed people in positions of leadership) -Took away Hybrid work option and brought back mandatory 4 days in office -Sustainability is used as a marketing tool instead of actually being applied to projects. Lots of greenwashing happening on projects to meet AIA requirements.

Explore other reviews about DLR Group

5.0
Jun 9, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Fantastic growth opportunities and great teamwork.

Cons

A large firm, so you must make yourself seen.

2.0
Mar 16, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

There are many talented and dedicated people across the company who care deeply about the quality of the work. The culture used to feel collaborative, creative, and integrity focused, which made it a great place to work.

Cons

Over the past few years, the culture has shifted and feels much more corporate than it once did. While leadership frequently speaks about employee ownership and valuing employee voices, many recent decisions do not reflect those values in practice. There is a growing emphasis on utilization and profitability over employee experience and studio culture, which has begun to contribute to a noticeable burnout culture across many teams. The company appears to be positioning itself to operate more like larger competitor firms. While growth can be positive, many employees originally joined and stayed because the firm felt different from those larger, more corporate environments. There is a growing perception that employees who stay quiet and align closely with leadership are more likely to advance. This can discourage open dialogue and honest feedback, and ultimately contributes to employees choosing to leave.

10
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