It was great until it wasn't - Visual Communication Designer The Clearing Employee Review

Good culture, interesting work, great people.

Government contracting has become unstable.

You’ll get hands-on exposure to consulting basics, research, and managing client relationships. It’s a solid first step if you’re fresh out of college and looking to build experience. There’s no formal training—you learn as you go, working with your peers and clients. You meet really great people that are super smart.

If you’re fresh out of college and just need something to get your foot in the door, The Clearing might seem like a decent option. You’ll pick up some consulting basics, learn how to do research, and figure out client relationship stuff. But honestly, you’ll learn most of it by trial and error because there’s no real training—just you, your peers, and clients trying to make it work. Now for the reality check: the culture here is toxic. There’s zero psychological safety. Leadership only wants yes-men, and if you have your own ideas or speak up, you’ll regret it. People stay quiet in meetings and even in chat because retaliation is a thing. I’ve seen it happen. There’s also no transparency—leadership keeps important info to themselves, so you’re constantly in the dark. It feels like a high school clique. If you’re in the “in crowd,” you’re fine. If not, good luck getting projects or support. Diversity? Pretty much nonexistent—the team is mostly white, heterosexual women. Add in unrealistic expectations, no clear processes, and a lean staffing model, and you’ve got a dog-eat-dog environment where everyone’s overworked just to keep things moving. Leadership ignores expert advice, makes short-sighted decisions, and even protects directors who are verbally abusive instead of fixing the problem. Bottom line: if you care about psychological safety, transparency, and a healthy work culture, this isn’t the place. It might give you some experience, but at a cost.