Worst experience of my career - Anonymous Refinery29 Employee Review

1.0
22 July 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- Some great people - Forward thinking

Cons

- Overall, it's a high school popularity contest - The most incompetent managers are hired. My manager was probably hired because she knew "the lingo" and the founders thought she was legit. - The majority of the managers lead by intimidation - Some of the people that are promoted into management positions are unqualified and inexperienced. I'm sure if these new managers were to leave R29, they'd be knocked back into their jr level roles. - Benefits are "meh" and not much time off. - Pay is not equal across the board - some people were breaking their backs making peanuts while others are grossly overpaid to just "hang out and talk the talk".

Explore other reviews about Refinery29

5.0
27 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great culture, extremely nice employees, diverse workplace

Cons

Not very cutting edge with their approach to tech

4.0
23 Mar 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Refinery29 was training day, every day. The pace and creative expectations forced you to sharpen fast. I cut my teeth here over four years and came out a fundamentally better strategist. The work was culturally plugged in, the people were sharp, and you were trusted with real responsibility early. If you wanted to learn how brand, content, and audience intersect at speed, there was no better place.

Cons

The intensity that makes it a great training ground also means the environment runs hot. Not everyone thrives in that — and depending on your team, support structures varied. The company went through a lot of change during my time, which created some instability.

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