Know the pros and cons of big 4 before you drink the koolaid. - Audit KPMG Employee Review

2.0
26 Nov 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

It's a great place to be from. The firm appears to really (truly) care about delivering quality work to clients. There are some smart cats there. Good job security (you need to be a complete idiot to lose your job). When you turn your LinkedIn button on, recruiters will smash you with offers offering higher pay and significantly better work-life balance.

Cons

Honestly, auditing sucks. You will spend countless hours with your butt in a chair ticking and tying. What you studied in college was far more interesting than auditing. You will get weird looks for having the gall to take a breather. You will get treated like a child. Told when you can go to lunch, when you can go home etc... You will likely get hit with a soul crushing workload. Then you will get pulled off of whatever menial task you're working on and told to jump on something else. Rinse and repeat all day. That quality work I mentioned above will come at the expense of your evening and weekend life. You will drive several hours to count boxes at a warehouse in the middle of nowhere, and be asked to log in that night at the hotel to help out on your current engagement. You will be asked to sacrifice many weekends; "Oh just log in from home, that is OK!" Do not make plans, you are at the complete mercy of your engagement team. During campus recruiting, you will be told you will work "normal" hours with the exception of season. This is a lie. You have interim, quarterly, and a myriad of other reasons for the team to panic and rack up billable hours. This will occur at the drop of a hat too; even when Grandma flew into visit. Everything is treated like it is the most important business task in the world. Despite all of the warnings you read on the internet, you will drink the koolaid during recruiting and accept the offer.

Explore other reviews about KPMG

5.0
14 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Wonderful training programs and set up for success if you seek help

Cons

Pay not as competitive as other big 4

4.0
11 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

It might sound cliche but the Pro for me is the people that I work with. I'm lucky enough to be staffed in a team with great leadership. Managers are actually willing to coach junior members and be a real mentor. I very much appreciate their efforts.

Cons

Long hours and office politics. This is pretty basic and obvious for any public accounting firms. Every time a quarter end, year end, or a special filing is going out, you can expect 10-14 hour days. It might be fine in your early career but it gets really tiring after a few years.

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