- Commutes are very time-consuming for west coast offices (for ex. it is not uncommon to ask a SF resource to attend a San Jose project for months)
- If you are placed in the IAFA solution, you will not have much opportunity for work beyond SOX audits since that is the extent of the work sold (in the Bay Area office). Rarely do people do proper consulting work.
- Trainings are very basic, not technical, and usually not that relevant to fieldwork. You learn on the job if you are lucky enough to have someone who will take the time to explain and properly critique your work.
- Blatant lack of diversity in most offices. Recruiting for the SF office is done primarily from one feeder school, which fosters a cliquey environment for campus new hires. This could easily be improved as there is much local talent in the Bay Area. Certain members of management appear to be aware of this.
- Many projects are underbid and/or oversold (this is how the work is won), which means there is often overtime and a lack of resources on projects.
- Certain management teams are clueless and lack a lot of technical/analytical skills/experience. On the flip, there are some very bright, talented members of management that are a pleasure to work with. However, usually they end up leaving.
-Lastly, like any company, there is the political game to navigate in the office. Your success will largely be determined on who you align yourself with; not necessarily your work ethic and technical knowledge. The politics at Protiviti are seemingly more apparent and difficult to avoid than that of a Big 4 because the Protiviti office sizes are smaller than Big 4.
Something to keep in mind as you continue your job search, the experience at Protiviti is very dependent upon your office location and the primary management teams you work with (similar to Big 4). If you are someone looking for a more technical experience, legitimate and recognized training, and better exit opportunities, I would look towards Big 4 for your career development/first few years. You may work slightly less hours at Protiviti, but the overall value of your experience and time is much bigger in the long run at a Big 4.
