Pleasant, smart company focused on narrow CPG marketing - Senior Research Analyst Nielsen Employee Review

4.0
May 17, 2009
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I was at BASES, which is a smaller unit of Nielsen focused on CPG new product consulting. BASES was a very pleasant place to work, my colleagues were kind and smart almost across the board. Work-life balance is decent (I did 45-50 hours a week I imagine). The managers were good for the most part (mine was fantastic). BASES was thought of as a leading section of the Nielsen Company, so I believe it could be a good starting point for work elsewhere in the company (although many people stay at BASES). As my first job, I learned a lot at BASES about generally navigating the workplace, and was able to find work in another industry based on my experience there.

Cons

New grads should consider that the work BASES does is very industry specific. You will learn a ton about a very narrow set of issues. I think this is a great first job, but if you decide market research isn't for you, leave before you become too specialized. Many people stay at BASES for years. Another thing - the work the company does is becoming more related to consulting, but client contact is quite limited. Also, I don't believe this is a good pre-MBA job - a few people had an MBA or got one through part time programs, but it was uncommon.

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5.0
Apr 14, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Was a great job with great benefits

Cons

No cons at all honestly

1.0
Apr 16, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Absolutley nothing. Which is a tragedy, because Nielsen was once an absolutely great place to work. I wanted to retire here. The culture used to be great, and I really loved being a part of this place. I loved my team, my management, and the people. Then along came the current CEO who is the classic example of a person who knows the cost of everything, but the value of nothing. He took over and ran the company full speed ahead in to the iceberg. And to try and save the sinking ship, he laid off literally thousands of highly experienced, highly trained, and highly engaged people to replace them with fresh overseas hires who know nothing about the company and expect them to be trained from the ground up to replace literally centuries of collective expererience and client relations. It's a disaster. This CEO shouldn't be trusted to run a lemonade stand.

Cons

Everything. Pay, job security, culture, management. Nothing is good here anymore. Don't take a job here unless you are truly desperate. And even then, it should only be as a stop-gap until you can find something else.

5
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