Pros
As many other reviewers point out, many people view Accenture as an impressive addition to your CV – however that view is mostly held by people who have no experience of Accenture, as either a client or an employee. The health insurance and maternity/paternity benefits are strong. Those in the most senior managerial positions are paid handsomely in terms of remuneration, shares and other benefits (although the same cannot be said for the other 95% of employees). Could offer you a career for life if you’re prepared to be at the mercy of performance process which doesn’t award ability or achievement – see Cons below.
Cons
The epitome of a corporate behemoth which is too big to offer employees the true nurturing and career progression everyone deserves. Nothing about Accenture feels personal – you really are just another number in a huge multinational machine. As someone who has a great deal of professional experience, I’ve never worked anywhere which made me feel so unimportant as Accenture. It really lacks a soul. If you are joining, or already have, and soon after feel that the company is not the right place for you – leave! Your client(s) or role(s) are important in shaping your experience within Accenture, but ultimately if the company’s culture, ethos and its people feel foreign to you, then escape quickly and without regret. Accenture sells a dream and delivers something far short of that. The training offered is sub-par to competing firms by quite some distance, something which is particularly obvious to clients when they meet recent joiners to the company. Accenture also fail to utilise employees’ previous experience – for example why would you force someone with years of Resources industry expertise into a Financial Services role – because you need a number to fill a role and really don’t care who that individual is. Failure to offer people the true ability to build on their experiences and shape their career is one reason why so many people decide to leave. It’s also worth saying that your working hours are entirely dependent on client, location and role, so this really is pot luck – some people really do end up with an intolerable work-life balance. If you’re prepared to perform significantly above the level at which you’re paid to, and wait for the overly restrictive performance achievement process to promote you up the career ladder then Accenture is a company that could offer you a career for life. However don’t be fooled, Accenture is not a meritocracy - very talented individuals will not necessarily progress much more rapidly than those who consistently just do enough year-on-year. Long-time employees I met who (at least said they) enjoyed working for Accenture, where those with an almost robotic approach to their work and their career. I truly believe that those who benefit the most from being at Accenture long-term, are the shareholders.