Old MCS - GREAT!!! Current ELS - SUCKS!!! - Client Service Elsevier Employee Review

2.0
24 Aug 2012
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

MC Strategies (MCS, R.I.P. 1986-2005) in Atlanta was a great, wonderful home-grown company that thrived prior to being acquired by Elsevier (ELS). The corporate environment was relaxed yet productive. Employees didn't mind putting in extra hours and efforts over and beyond what was required because the then-president, Don Galimore, was a great person to work for. You wanted to do your best and it was never a chore.

Cons

Since Elsevier bought out MCS in 2005, everything has gone downhill from there. Certainly every company's goal is to make money, but ELS does it at the expense of employee morale, to the point that more often than not, employees that stayed became discontent and migrated towards bringing home a paycheck rather than truly enjoying working their hardest for the good of the company. It's counter-productive to browbeat employees into submission who are already more than capable and willing to do the job asked of them. The corporate structure is a joke. Now only the brown-nosers who throw their team members under the bus are the ones getting promoted, and upper management is more inclined to dismiss those who really do the best work and aren't into kissing up.

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5.0
11 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Industry leader Great benefits Incentive trips Invests heavily in its employees

Cons

Processes can be burdensome and clunky at times

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Elsevier Response
3w
Thank you for this balanced and thoughtful review. We're glad to hear that our benefits and investment in people are making a positive impact, those are commitments we take seriously. On the process feedback: Leadership is actively reviewing operational workflows, and the advice to listen more closely to employee feedback is something we're holding ourselves accountable to. If you're open to it, we'd encourage you to bring specific examples forward through your team or people and culture contacts. Change is most effective when it's grounded in the real experiences of the people doing the work, and that means you. Feel free to reach out to us at elseviergdrev@elsevier.com to provide more information Thank you for staying engaged and for caring enough to share this. It matters.
4.0
9 June 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Every direct manager I've had has been excellent: supportive, positive, and trusting me to deliver good work instead of micromanaging. Employees tend to stay, which suggests stability even if not everyone gets promotions or significant raises.

Cons

The pressure to outsource as much as possible, which is common at every publisher, leads to frustration. Because promotions or significant raises seem to be rare, you may be stuck in neutral unless you're very openly ambitious.

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