Great benefits, flat organization with little room for career growth - Financial Manager Graybar Employee Review

2.0
Oct 26, 2011
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

-Fully funded pension plan and profit sharing nearly every year -Employee-owned with stock that always pays quarterly dividend with occasional stock dividend -Industry-leader that is profitable and very financially strong

Cons

-Flat organization that is slow to change, more reactive than proactive -New senior management is much more cutthroat and all about the bottom line, with fear as primary motivation tactic -Many "lifers" who block opportunities for career upward mobility -Corporate is consolidating more and more responsibilities from field to St. Louis HQ (particularly accounting & finance) -Base salaries are lower than industry standard

Explore other reviews about Graybar

5.0
Jun 11, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Strong department leadership in current role

Cons

Many senior team members with decades of stored brain knowledge that is hard to share

3.0
Apr 6, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Many opportunities to learn about distribution and management. Pto is three weeks per year plus holidays and over a s Week of sick time. If you work here longer, you can buy enough company shares to receive a sizeable dividend each year. You are allowed to buy about 5% of your salary in company shares per year and then receive usually 20% of that back per year. The profit sharing plan contributes 10% of your salary to your 401k account but you need to be vested to keep it all.

Cons

You will need a second job to live. Sales reps make way more and do half the work but they report to their managers much more. If you are a CSR, sales people feel entitled to treat you however they want and their manager will back them up. You are watched by coworkers and management like a high surveillance prison especially when you're new but they will leave you alone if you're good at your job after a year or so. Graybar brags about how much revenue and profit they make but middle and upper management suck it all up leaving scraps for the workers who made it for them.

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