An Insidious Place to Work - Client Service Consultant Gallup Employee Review

1.0
Mar 1, 2013
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The individuals who recognize the insidious culture of Gallup are wonderful. Not only do they have amazing judgment, but they are also hard workers and good people stuck in a bad situation. Some have become really good friends who I talk to on a daily basis. The flexible work schedule is great.

Cons

1. Management (particularly client service management): There are two types of management that are causing this issue: 1. senior client service management and 2. all other client service management. 1. Senior Client Service Management: These individuals work on fear and fear alone. If you’re not the favorite, watch out because this will undoubtedly affect the types of projects you work on and ultimately your bonus/salary. The best test to see if you are one of the favorites is what I like to call the Q12 test, meaning, do you work on small Q12 employee engagement projects (which is mainly admin, or implementation as Gallup likes to call it, and data entry)? If you answered yes to this, then you are NOT a favorite. I suggest you quit immediately. 2. All Other Client Service Managers: These individuals are highly inexperienced with three years at most of work experience and many have never worked in the field of the employees that they are currently managing. The majority have also only worked at Gallup which exacerbates their complete unquestionable devotion to a company that is clearly shooting itself in the foot. This unquestionable devotion is obviously one reason why these “managers,” or go-tos as Gallup likes to label them, were given the position. These individuals can be molded, they do not speak out, and they never stick up for their employees, unless said employee is a favorite (see below). In sum, these individuals are puppets. I suggest you smile at all times when in their presence, fill your emails to them with positive “!” and “:)” and most importantly, never trust them. They will betray you at every turn. 2. Culture of Fear: If you are not smiling at all times, or your emails lack “!” or “:),” or your ‘attitude’ reflects anything other than absolute pure enjoyment to be at work that day, then you’re in trouble my friend. Management will quickly label you as “negative” and your career is effectively over at Gallup. Additionally, if you put anything less than 4 out of 5 on your biannual employee engagement surveys, then you should have your resignation ready to go. They say the survey is confidential, but unfortunately that is a massive lie and several people have been let go because they gave low scores. 3. Favoritism: Every company has favoritism, but the disparity and inequality of both client projects and pay structure between those two groups is the largest I have ever experienced or heard of. The favorites are set up for success by being put on larger clients that are generally allocated more resources. This allows them to get high client satisfaction scores which affects their bonus and pay structure. Conversely, the non-favorites are placed on smaller clients, with minimal resources and little assistance that affect their bottom line. As a result, those who are favored keep rising, while all others see little movement. It should be noted that the favorites are not favorites because they have more experience and a greater skillset. The truth is that these individuals actually have a lower skillset and are the least talented in the company. The reason they are promoted is that they never question and do as they are told. This perpetuates the lack of innovation, not only within the company, but also with clients who are ultimately suffering the consequences of Gallup’s underhanded culture. 4. Zero transparency: No company is completely transparent, but Gallup is in a class all its own, particularly given the current lawsuit brought on by the DOJ. On the outside they continue to tell their employees that the company is financially stable and even growing, but that is a lie. Every day you hear about a new client who quit, or another government project that was lost due to the lawsuit. There are even rumblings of a layoff, but you’d never know it with the all the money spent on renting out restaurants to celebrate one new client being brought onto the roster. We’ll see how long this one lasts.

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5.0
Mar 2, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The work is meaningful and mission driven, and there is strong autonomy and room to shape strategy and build impactful client partnerships. The people are high talent and always pushing each other in the right ways, and we’ve embraced AI in ways that will allow us to grow well into the future.

Cons

High growth environment requires some adaptability and those who require a lot of oversight or direction may struggle.

5.0
Jan 13, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

When I was an undergraduate student in a public administration course in 1985 I was advised that frequent career changes were the new norm in society. That I would more than likely have many jobs over the span of my career. It turns out that this was half-correct. At Gallup I have had many "jobs" in a consistent and rewarding career that has run 30 years so far. This is an organization that is built on intelligence, research-based counsel, independence, talent, strengths and, ultimately, a respect for entrepreneurial thinking. It has a very flat structure, and leadership is available and open to insights and suggestions. Your growth is really only limited by your imagination and commitment to driving your career day in and day out. One of the great opportunities that Gallup provides employees is the possibility to be an owner of the company. You can have skin in the game from an early stage in your career. There are even programs that support you to take on ownership within the 401K and independently. You can really build meaningful wealth through this program. Benefits are very good in general. We have evolved as a company and continue to offer more and more competitive benefits each year.

Cons

It depends how you read this, but, you have to work hard and be open to change, learning, renewing, and evolving to stay relevant. This is not a negative for me, but it is not a place you can come work and expect your annual salary to just grow. It is a place that is constantly changing and you need to be flexible enough to do the same. You get out of the place what you put into the place.

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