Is Gates Foundation a good company to work for?

Gates Foundation has an overall rating of 3.7 out of 5, based on over 699 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months. 62% of employees would recommend working at Gates Foundation to a friend and 70% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Gates Foundation have been left by employees working as Program Assistant , Senior Program Assistant and Associate Program Officer .

Does Gates Foundation pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Gates Foundation employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.5 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Gates Foundation. This rating has improved by 5% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Gates Foundation?

62% of Gates Foundation employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Gates Foundation 3.3 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.4 for culture and values and 3.2 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Gates Foundation?

Program Officer (56) , Program Assistant (40) , Senior Program Officer (36) , Deputy Director (20) , Senior Program Assistant (16) , Associate Program Officer (12) , Program Coordinator (11) , Project Manager (9) , Director (7) , Program Manager (7) , Senior Officer (6) , Associate Strategy Officer (5) , Consultant (5) , Intern (5) , Senior Program Coordinator (5)

What are the pros of working at Gates Foundation according to real employee reviews?

"Benefits are great and very comprehensive" ((in 130 reviews)); "Great people all working towards the same mission" ((in 56 reviews)); "There are so many great colleagues and experiences to learn from." ((in 49 reviews)); "it was alright and good pay" ((in 21 reviews)); "Salaries are good for those coming from the non" ((in 14 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Gates Foundation according to real employee reviews?

"Culture is toxic and impractical" ((in 42 reviews)); "HR and management is poor" ((in 26 reviews)); "You will be the luckiest if you end up in a team that has a great manager." ((in 20 reviews)); "Most of the senior leadership at this (global organization) is white and male" ((in 17 reviews)); "Terrible work/life balance." ((in 15 reviews))

What are employees saying about Gates Foundation layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Gates Foundation layoffs and their outlook for job security at Gates Foundation in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Gates Foundation locations?

Seattle , Washington , New York , Chicago , Ridgewood , North Chicago , Vienna , Phoenix , Omaha , Arlington , San Antonio , Virginia , Los Angeles , Mountain View , Palo Alto , United , Laurel , Jacksonville , Boston , Cambridge , Springfield , South Seattle

Gates Foundation reviews

3.7

62% would recommend to a friend

(561 total reviews)

Mark Suzman

81% approve of CEO

70% positive business outlook

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Gates Foundation has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 561 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Gates Foundation employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Nonprofit & NGO industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

561 reviews

2.0

Jan 16, 2013

So much potential...

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Smart people; significant funding to do interesting work; great mission; committed co-chairs

Cons

People are not very nice; a place where favoritism reigns, resulting in a lot of sucking up to superiors; not diverse, despite the populations and geographies we intend to reach (related: program officers have very little, if any, experience living and working in those geographies); highly theoretical, not very practical;

4.0

Dec 2, 2012

A fast-paced place to learn tremendously but you have to like being under constant stress

Program assistant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

If you like being around smart interesting people with amazing backgrounds and ambitions, BMGF is great. You learn a lot and if you have a great manager, can grow. Lots of resources for creativity.

Cons

Generally a stressful and competitive place. HR and management is poor-- not a lot of transparency, accountability and feedback loops, poor consistency and standards, lots of people without management experience doing management. Lots of smart people means lots of ego to deal with. The organization is constantly reorganizing and this is also stressful. Top and bottom heavy organization with little clear upward mobility within the organization.

4.0

Dec 27, 2011

Great opportunity to see your daily work have an impact on the world

Program assistant

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

-Mission -Competitive compensation -Opportunity to work with brilliant individuals -The senior leadership team truly believes that every life has equal value -International travel opportunities for Program Assistants -Program Assistants are highly regarded assets and not just "admins" as seen in other organizations.

Cons

-Very lateral organization with little room for career advancement beyond a program assistant role -As a contracted employee through Volt many of my colleagues referred to and treated me as a "second class citizen", because I did not have the same privileges as full time employees -Cliquey and difficult to be "accepted" by other Program Assistants

Viewing 130 - 132 of 561 Reviews

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Jobs at Gates Foundation

Senior Communications Officer, Brand Experiential Design

Senior Communications Officer, Creative Partnerships (Limited Term Role*)

Senior Research Scientist, Population Health Modeling (Nutrition and Disease) (*2-year LTE)

Coordinator, Business Project Management (Convenings) (LTE until 31 December 2027)

Principal Officer, Measurement, Learning & Evaluation