Company: PwC
Date: 2019-09-13
Overall rating: 2/5
Employment status: former
Experience level: Junior

A means to an end
Pros: The pros of working in PwC (Operate) are atypical of any large firm in Belfast. They can give a graduate a much needed CV uplift in terms of experience. You can travel, they are flexible with working from home (certain projects are more lenient)
They are also relocating Operate to the city Centre so it will be easy to access
Cons: The company is infested with shrewd yes men who care nothing apart from you their own career advancement and will sink you in a millisecond.  On this note, it goes without saying be careful who you call your friends. PwC’s wider firm exploits Belfast as a cheap resource, this is particularly true for the London and Manchester teams who view Belfast as a service delivery centre. In addition as you work across teams throughout the UK you will struggle to identify who your team is. Without naming specific teams, the turnover rate is unheard of.  At one stage a team had 10 notices in at one time and 25% of employees wanted to stay, Having worked at citi and KPMG I can say that If you want to pursue a career in this sector you are in the wrong place. The pay is the worst part and undoubtedly the reason for the turn over, imagine working 3-5 years at university to be paid 17k, it will take you 5 years and 5 promotions to earn a ‘decent salary’ so work this out, you graduate at age 22 get a job at PwC age 23, and work for 5 years, by the time you are 28 you will be on the same wage as a graduate in citi or Deloitte and even still it is not guaranteed you will be promoted every time. There are some people in the firm who are content and have the fear to move elsewhere,This is the reason why the turnover is what it is. From a managerial perspective they do not acknowledge this. If you’re easy to manipulate and wish to become a “team lead” with little to know technical knowledge you could bluff your way into a senior position, providing that you are climbing the greasy pole. Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the role is that your hard work is not recognised, you could work 40 hours overtime and obtain ZERO recognition, however if you organise an out of office social event you could be in for a promotion, this is unheard off in this sector.  The title suggests a means to an end, that is exactly what this job is. Get your 1-4 years done and move on and enjoy working in a role where you are treated like an adult.

I’ve gave  place this a 2 star rating, this is very generous and undoubtedly only given because of the happy aspects and friends I have met in this company