Another podium placing for Bain on Glassdoor best workplace list

Global management firm Bain & Company has achieved yet another podium placing on Glassdoor’s annual Best Places to Work list – but has fallen short of the top ten on the employer rating platform’s inaugural Singapore edition.

In an industry notorious for its high churn-rates, tortuous hours and ‘up or out’ mentality, management consultancy Bain & Company continues to defy expectations by once again landing at the top of employer rating website Glassdoor’s annual Best Places to Work list, this year placing in second. Bain has finished in the top four every year since the rankings’ inception in 2008, including scoring its fourth number one position on last year's list.

“We’re extremely proud of our Glassdoor ranking,” said Bain’s Chief Talent Officer Russ Hagey.  “We work hard to create a culture second to none, and our employees continually reaffirm that we’re succeeding.  Bain’s culture is a key reason people join the firm and choose to build their careers with us.  It’s why global leaders seek us out to collaborate with them to deliver transformative results. And it’s what earns us this prestigious recognition year after year.”

Knocking Bain from pole position this year was marketing and sales software company HubSpot, which shot up from 16th in 2009 to claim the top spot, while another former perennial favourite and three-time champion in Facebook continues to plummet down the list, falling from first just two years ago to now feature at 23rd. Indeed, a number of stalwarts have fallen this year, including Bain competitor BCG, which has dropped from top-five finishes for the past three years down to 13th position this year.

The third of the MBB, and the biggest – McKinsey & Company – finished just behind Facebook in 24th (down from 19th last year and 12th the year before), while the big names in professional services were led by Accenture at 88th with PwC squeezing into the top 100 at 94th. Deloitte and EY fall out of the top 100, while DocuSign (up from 17th last year), In-N-Out Burger (3rd), and Sammons Financial Group (22nd) round out the top five behind HubSpot and Bain.

“This year’s winners stand out for promoting transparency with employees, offering career growth opportunities and providing work driven by impact and purpose,” said incoming Glassdoor CEO and current president and COO Christian Sutherland-Wong, who previously spent three years as a financial services and telco consultant at Bain.  “Congratulations go to all of the exceptional employers this year who stand out in the eyes of their employees.”

As for Bain, one of the firm’s senior consultants in the US was stated on Glassdoor; “It's incredible to feel like you're a part of a community that's in your corner and wants to propel your career, no matter where it may head. The amount that you can learn from the work, the people, the clients, etc. is incredible. The people at Bain truly believe in their culture and work can sometimes be, dare I say it, fun because of the energy everyone brings to the table!”

Meanwhile, Glassdoor this year extended its rankings to a number of new jurisdictions, including a top ten compiled for Singapore – where the biggest of the tech giants continue to hold sway. Google took top spot, followed by Facebook, with Amazon and Microsoft in 4th and 5th – the so-called Gang of Four split only by Shell. McKinsey however holds a higher rating in Singapore than all of the above, but was ineligible due to the minimum requirement of 1,000 employees.