Guitar Center reviews

2.8

41% would recommend to a friend

(2,726 total reviews)
avatar

Gabe Dalporto

28% approve of CEO

24% positive business outlook

Guitar Center has an employee rating of 2.8 out of 5 stars, based on 2,726 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an average working experience there. The Guitar Center employee rating is 21% below average for employers within the Retail & Wholesale industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

3K reviews
1.0
Sep 8, 2018

Do not work there!

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Employee discount and some awesome people

Cons

Executive management is out of touch with reality. Very cut throat environment yet they wonder why they receive poor scores on their employee engagement survey in certain categories. Many people there have come up thru the ranks however truly lack the right skill set to be effective. They “teach” Servant Leadership however many executives don’t have a clue on how to execute that mentality with their staff. Instead they speak down to you in front of others and definitely manage by fear. During annual review period they determined the metrics AFTER the year was over which then caused poor ratings on employee reviews and subsequently little or no merit increases. They continue to overwork the staff and poor data integrity and processes makes the job difficult to execute properly - just plain inefficient. They continue to burn thru dedicated employees and it’s just a matter of time before they face legal action for their behavior. HR dept is definitely mismanaged and is not in favor of the employee. I would never recommend working here.

1.0
Aug 20, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Not Pros, amateurs. I can't really think of a pro and I'm not trolling. If you like hanging around failed musicians then I guess that's a pro.

Cons

Terrible health benefits compared to other companies, management pushes around people and won't listen to good ideas. The pay is extremely low for the IT field. If you're serious about growing your career this place will stunt your career growth. Directors in IT related fields are more interested in their own bonuses than in developing their subordinates. Management will not promote you nor give you merit based on performance to increase their own bottom line. You will get thrown under the bus for things you never even did. Be warned. Do not work here if you're in IT!

1.0
Aug 11, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

A huge selection of equipment

Cons

GC has been so focused on margins that they have forgotten that customers are what make a company successful. Amazon has kicked their butt as an online marketplace for musical instruments and Sweetwater has shown that knowledge and customer service leads to sales and repeat business from working musicians.

Viewing 13 - 15 of 2,726 Reviews

Glassdoor has 2,790 Guitar Center reviews submitted anonymously by Guitar Center employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Guitar Center is right for you.