Supposed prestige overshadowed by nepotism and poor management - Manager KPMG Employee Review

1.0
May 7, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Big4 "prestige" - Diverse experience across different domains and sectors

Cons

- Entrenched nepotism and prejudice - if you aren't part of the Jordanian or Indo-Pak lobbies, you are on your own. - Outright dishonesty when it comes to reviews - many colleagues echo the same, senior leaders will cover their mistakes by throwing lower ranked individuals under the bus. There is no feedback mechanism on individual leadership members so they operate with impunity. - Conflicts of interest with UAE team following the merger in 2024 - they don't care about the KSA staff and its in their interest to weaken the team so they get the work. - Staff that charge hours on projects they do not actually work on - posing a financial burden on the success of the project. - Really bad managers that will block your business development efforts because they feel they may be outshined - in my case I brought business that they dragged their feet on until it was lost (same prospective client requested separate proposals 3 times, on the 3rd attempt when I concluded this was intentional, I ended up referring to a small local firm that won the work and repeat business). - Others experience - brought in at a certain level, promised promotion after 6 months if performed well (they did and 2 years later still no promotion). - Double promotions for those that are part of ethnocentric lobby groups. - Mass ongoing layoffs not based on merit. (100s since 2025)

Explore other reviews about KPMG

5.0
Apr 30, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The people are the best to work with

Cons

The hours are long and lots of meetings depending where you sit in the org

2.0
Jun 17, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

You get to work with an awesome, highly resilient group of local peers in the advisory practice. The KPMG brand still holds value, but the internal team dynamics have become incredibly fractured.

Cons

We have outsourced 80%+ of our Risk Advisory work, leaving onshore seniors with massive gaps in their experience. As a manager, I am stuck doing senior-level work because I typically have only one or zero local seniors or associates on my teams. The best leaders have already resigned because this model prevents actual management and mentoring. Also, it might take you 30+ years to become partner in Risk Advisory, if at all.

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