Pros
I wasn't going to leave a review but I'm so upset by the "positive" below, that I felt I needed to say something. Many reviews are pointing to the flexible scheduling but this can be found in a lot of places now. Clients are decent.
Cons
PR agencies can be challenging but rbb is on another level when it comes to workload, how they treat you, and what you make. Don't be fooled by what the managers try to sell you in some of the other reviews. This is a work environment built for THEM. It's very clear that the senior managers are trying to do damage control here. But take their advice with a grain of salt. Working here has many, many challenges that are unseen elsewhere. First, they pay very little and expect you to work like you're making 6 figures. A partner has told multiple new hires that rbb is like the Google of PR. If that were true, salaries would be a lot higher. I received offers from other firms prior to taking this job, but was wooed by rbb's "total rewards package," which is all just one fancy marketing spin to say that they pay for your parking and your laptop. They literally inflate your "pay" to be 20K more than what you see in your paycheck. Other firms in the area will easily pay more, and you don't have the pressure of all the added administrative stress that they impose on you. For example, one added "perk" is the CSA (client service award) "half day" with your team -- if you win. First, you have to submit to win the award. The application process is a huge nightmare and ALWAYS falls on the younger staffers. It's all just additional, extra fluff that you don't need in addition to your work. Then, if you win, the reward is a half day with your team... you get to spend around $700 (two week's salary for an AAE) for "team bonding" that gets you no where. In addition to all the "administrative fluff" that is mentioned above, you will be worked to the bone. There have been times on my vacations, or doctor's appointments, where i've had to stop what i was doing, jump on my laptop, and respond to an "urgent" request that never ends up getting sent to the client. Partners say it's "the nature of PR," but the team is big enough and more than capable to cover while another team member is out. There is also no capability of growing here. One review says she started as an intern and became a partner, but that offer no longer exists unless more of the senior managers either (1) leave or (2) retire, but that's not happening anytime soon because they are all late 30s. There has been about 25 people who have left since last year, and the partners are still unfazed by this. They are not doing any kind of inward reflection -- they blame it on the industry, COVID-19 and the generation of workers (millennials and Gen Z). They think we want everything handed to us, when all we really want is higher pay and respect in the workplace for all the work we do. Mark my words, this agency is not what it was and continues to decline.
