Pros
- Competitive pay - Access to the knowledge and insight of not just senior management who have been doing this for 10/15+ years at a high level, but also the executives they know who are experts in their industries - Some really clever people who push themselves really hard - Steep learning curve, even if you've come from search. There's a level of excellence expected at RRA that you either raise yourself to through learning, or you sink. - High level of outward-facing integrity and highly respected in the search industry
Cons
- The company will protect its big billers, no matter what and at whatever cost to the rest of the personnel. Experience is incredibly dependent on your team, but when you have conflicts with senior leadership, they will not be asked to change their behavior due to the revenue they're billing, so toxicity is overlooked to prevent certain individuals from leaving the firm. - There is absolutely zero room for mistakes. If you make a mistake, even as small as a spelling error in a draft document, it's pointed out and raised to your manager - It's every man and woman for themselves - every task feels like a test, as opposed to an opportunity to learn and collaborate with your team. Certain people will report back your team leader about you to win brownie points, and nothing is sacred - from the work you to do to the questions you ask, expect everything to be discussed and critiqued by the wider team. - Consultants are completely isolated from the rest of the company and most never come out of their offices to speak to the rest of the team on the floor. They are the priority citizens, and everyone else (even researchers) are treated as support staff. For the consultants, every win is entirely theirs, but every loss is the team's. - The gossip at the firm is incredibly toxic. I've made some strong friends from my time with the company, but every catch-up with them since leaving is punctuated by how someone is disliked or someone is underperforming. I genuinely feel that it's no fault of my friends that are still at the firm, but rather that they are reflecting the culture they spend 10+ hours a day immersed in. - The firm, frankly, lacks diversity despite claiming that they're champions of it. On my team specifically, I felt that there was a complete blindspot to the racial, social, and economic bias that most of the team had, and DE&I candidates were discussed in shocking terms. - Finally, progression is nearly impossible, unless you want to move laterally. Despite being paid well and getting annual salary increases/healthy bonuses, expect to stay in your role for minimum 2-3 years, and even then, people will not put your forward for promotion. TLDR: You need to be a very specific person (competitive, thick-skinned, patient, and dutiful) to succeed here. Given this, it's a great place to learn what 'excellence' in recruitment looks like and foster discipline and accountability. However, I would think twice if you value creativity, trust, community, and would rather learn through doing with the support that has your back, as you will definitely not get that at RRA.
