Kia 

Europe 

GmbH

Reviews

What I dislike about the employer

Usually, it is quite difficult to get a timely response from P&O, payroll, and GA. Fortunately, I have had very few issues with their topics, but I know colleagues who still face problems after years with salary calculations or find it very hard to book a pool car, as their tickets are often replied to very late.

Suggestions for improvement

Working atmosphere

I have really enjoyed working with everyone in my department since joining the company. Everyone is fair and there is trust among colleagues. After several months here, my initial expectations have been exceeded.

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The atmosphere within the company doesn't always reflect the reality outside. For example, I spoke with a Kia manager who has extensive experience in the automotive industry, and they mentioned that the hiring and travel freeze could be seen as quite extreme, especially since our business performance is strong. Additionally, some employees have expressed concerns about limited benefit as well as salaries that don't always seem to match their responsibilities and the high pressure to deliver results, even when performance is already good.

Work-Life Balance

In my team, the work-life balance is excellent. You can take vacation freely, there’s no pressure about working hours, and everyone is very supportive if you need help with personal matters. We also prioritize family, so we make sure to cover for each other whenever someone needs it.

Career/Professional development

For interns, especially after the hiring freeze, there are basically no opportunities for careers within the company. I’ve seen many interns who wanted to stay but had to leave because there were no open positions, even though their work was very supportive to the team and showed the need for an additional person. Sometimes it seems like Hyundai Motor Group is advocating for retaining talent in the group, but then does nothing to make it happen. Every time a good intern leaves, it’s a problem for everyone, since a new recruitment process starts, the team has more work with onboarding, and the intern only becomes fully effective after a couple of months while they’re still getting up to speed. The education opportunities are good with the free LinkedIn Learning and training budget, but only if you have a permanent position.

Salary/Social benefits

For an internship, especially compared to my home country, the salary is quite good. However, the benefits are generally quite limited. Hyundai Motor Europe provides significantly more to its employees, and it would be great to see Kia aim to match these offerings in the coming years.

Environmental and social responsibility

I’m not familiar with it, so I’ll give it 3 out of 5 stars as a neutral rating.

Collegiality

In my department, the cohesion is very high. People from different areas continuously ask for support from others, and nobody has ever held back. Personally, I have asked for help several times, and everyone has always been kind and supportive to me.

Interaction with older colleagues

I’m not familiar with it, so I’ll give it 3 out of 5 stars as a neutral rating.

Leadership behavior

I have a very good relationship with my manager. He always explains all the information I need to perform tasks clearly, holds me accountable for my projects, and involves me in some project decisions. Additionally, we have a good personal relationship as we often have lunch and breaks together, he has helped me with some bureaucratic matters, and we enjoy joking with each other.

Working conditions

The Kia office is very welcoming. The lighting is nice, and the kitchen area is great for taking a quick break with colleagues. The desks are well set up, allowing people to focus on their work. However, there are very few meeting rooms and desks available. My computer, in particular, is no longer as fast as it used to be. When I run complex applications or Excel formulas, it often freezes, and I have to restart the app, risking losing any unsaved work. Sometimes, I even need to restart the computer because it becomes completely unusable due to lag and application freezes.

Communication

Regular meetings with my team, as well as Town Halls and conferences, offer effective communication. I have always received enough information to complete my tasks and have consistently been informed about projects and company performance.

Equality

I’m not familiar with it, so I’ll give it 3 out of 5 stars as a neutral rating.

Interesting tasks

Since I am currently an intern, I have limited influence over my tasks and mostly handle operational work. However, over time, I have gradually taken on more complex and critical tasks. Occasionally, my workload has been a bit light, which I believe is because the projects in my team are very follow-up driven. We have many stakeholders involved, so we need several confirmations before moving on to more operational activities.

What I like about the employer

Free lunch (even we know there’s no such thing as “free lunch”).

What I dislike about the employer

Toxic leadership.

Suggestions for improvement

Working atmosphere

Kia Europe’s culture is dominated by fear, control and distrust, leading management to adopt a defensive or aggressive posture whenever employees raise concerns or ask questions.

The company motto, “Don’t bring me problems, bring me solutions,” is often used to shut down open communication, discouraging team members from speaking up unless they have an immediate solution.

This fear-based approach backfires growth, limits innovation, and keeps employees from addressing genuine challenges that need collaborative solutions.

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Kia Europe’s workplace culture does not align with its public image as a “Great Place to Work.”

The actual environment is characterized by a fear-based approach to control, a lack of accountability, constant negative feedback without support, high workloads, and an absence of meaningful diversity initiatives.

Without a significant cultural shift toward a genuinely supportive and empowering workplace, Kia will struggle to achieve its aspiration of becoming an “Employer of Choice.”

Work-Life Balance

Work-life balance is nearly non-existent at Kia Europe.

Staff frequently put in overtime due to chronic understaffing and unreasonable workloads, and employees are often unable to compensate for this extra time.

Many in management work 10 to 12 hours a day, struggling to manage their overwhelming workload, which has led some to burnout.

This culture of constant overwork creates a sense of urgency that leaves employees spending long hours at their desks, often unable to take regular breaks.

It is common to see employees running to and from the restroom, trying to keep up with their tasks, and even being required to log time spent having a coffee unless it’s directly work-related.

Career/Professional development

Unlike many dynamic organizations, Kia has limited plans for expansion, which restricts the availability of new roles and career advancement opportunities within the company.

This lack of growth at the organizational level means that employees hoping to climb the corporate ladder often find themselves facing a stagnated career path, with few openings for promotion.

Further compounding this issue, Kia’s management approach includes a structured guideline for evaluating employee performance, which mandates that a certain minimum percentage of employees receive the lowest performance ratings.

This approach keeps overall expectations on career growth low and adds a layer of discouragement for employees who might otherwise aspire to progress within the company.

Even high-performing employees may receive limited recognition or lower ratings simply to fulfill these internal quotas, regardless of their actual contributions or potential.

Salary/Social benefits

Despite Kia Europe’s ambition to be an “employer of choice,” its salary offerings do not reflect the intensity of workloads or the high demands placed on employees, which often far exceed the traditional requirements of similar roles.

Teams are regularly expected to work overtime to compensate for understaffing, often without appropriate financial recognition or the ability to recuperate this time.

For many employees, the additional hours and stress are not matched by fair compensation, leaving them to feel that their efforts and sacrifices are overlooked.

Environmental and social responsibility

At Kia Europe, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives remain largely on the sidelines, with minimal commitment to integrating these values into daily practices.

Despite the company’s claims to uphold modern, responsible business standards, there is little evidence to suggest that these initiatives hold any real weight in decision-making or management priorities.

Topics such as gender parity and age diversity are brushed aside, receiving little attention until external audits or compliance checks demand action.

Gender balance and equal representation, for instance, remain more of a checklist item than a core objective.

Although Kia Europe occasionally touts the importance of a diverse and inclusive workforce, in practice, no tangible steps are taken to close gender gaps, nor is there a genuine effort to create a balanced age distribution within teams.

Instead of proactively building a culture that champions diversity, equity, and inclusion, Kia Europe’s approach is reactionary, taking minimal action only when forced by external scrutiny.

Collegiality

While team members are generally friendly, management’s authoritarian style creates a stressful, hostile atmosphere.

Collaboration takes a back seat to a hyper-competitive environment.

Although management believes this drives performance, it only fosters unrealistic achievement standards, causing friction and undermining teamwork.

Interaction with older colleagues

The leadership structure is dominated by older executives who tend to favor traditional, command-and-control management styles.

This creates a work culture that is more about compliance than collaboration, fostering an environment of fear and toxicity.

This homogeneity in leadership limits the company’s adaptability and innovation, as well as the perspectives available to younger employees.

Leadership behavior

Interactions with my manager were the least favorable part of my experience.

My manager routinely exhibits toxic behaviors, including gaslighting, gossiping, sarcasm, passive aggression, and constant criticism, aimed at keeping employees under strict control.

Interns and junior employees are often on the receiving end of humiliating treatment, frequently breaking down in tears, eroding their self-confidence and affecting their career aspirations.

In general, management’s focus on minor issues often leads to relentless micromanagement, while important, high-level objectives are ignored.

Employees are expected to operate with zero error tolerance, and any perceived “failure” is met with passive-aggressive comments and sarcastic remarks.

Constructive guidance is rare; instead, employees face criticism without any direction on how to improve. This feedback often feels designed to undermine rather than help, leaving employees in a state of perpetual self-doubt.

It is particularly concerning that new hires are subjected to this treatment from the start, with almost no onboarding support.

Working conditions

The physical work environment and resources provided are insufficient, with outdated technology and limited meeting spaces.

Employees frequently have to work around these limitations, adding to the stress and frustration of the job.

Communication

Kia Europe’s approach to communication reflects its broader culture of blame and mistrust.

Managers often discuss colleagues disrespectfully in open spaces. This lack of professionalism discourages open communication.

Public reprimands are common, and new employees are often introduced to this environment with minimal onboarding or training.

The command-and-control management styles creates an environment of fear and high stress, making it difficult to communicate issues effectively.

Equality

Kia Europe often promotes the diversity of nationalities among its employees, but it lacks genuine initiatives to foster equity or to close the gender gap.

Women hold very few leadership positions, and those who do often mimic the attitudes of their male counterparts to fit in.

This leaves younger women without positive female role models, diminishing their confidence in their own potential and discouraging them from aspiring to higher positions.

Kia Europe’s superficial diversity efforts do little to inspire women or foster an inclusive culture.

Interesting tasks

Employees are often assigned unfamiliar tasks with tight deadlines and little to no instructions.

This pressure to perform without any support makes for an unsustainable workload.

This paired with poor project planning and constant “firefighting” keep employees under time pressure, adding to an already tense atmosphere.

Tasks are often outdated and inefficient, with many assignments easily automatable.

However, a lack of digital literacy in management means that inefficient, repetitive tasks continue to take up time.

Employees regularly spend excessive hours refining PowerPoint slides and updating old Excel files, tasks that add little value but remain a staple of the company’s operations.

What I like about the employer

Location is nice. Canteen is great. Very International. Nice industry to work in.

What I dislike about the employer

Culture, hierachy, salaries are not great

Suggestions for improvement

What I like about the employer

International environment. Great canteen(free).

What I dislike about the employer

Level of transparency.

Suggestions for improvement

What I like about the employer

Kantine und relativ gute Bezahlen

What I dislike about the employer

Diskriminierung, Qualität wird mit Quantität verwechsel hinsichtlich Arbeitszeiten....

Suggestions for improvement

What I like about the employer

Gute Kantine. Verkehrsgünstige Lage.

What I dislike about the employer

Koreanischer Managementstil, Willkür durch Manager, Nicht-Einhaltung vorgegebener Richtlinien durch das Management. Sehr unflexible Arbeitszeiten/Kernzeiten. Kein Home-office möglich.

Suggestions for improvement

Working atmosphere

Mitarbeiter ok, koreanische Vorgesetzte zum Teil etwas schwierig

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Nach außen gutes Image. Jedoch hohe Personalfluktuation.

Work-Life Balance

45 Stundenwochen normal

Career/Professional development

Management-Stellen wurden meist durch Neu-Einstellungen besetzt,. statt durch Weiterqualifizierung der eigenen Mitarbeiter.

Salary/Social benefits

Gehalt ganz ok für Zeitarbeit.

Environmental and social responsibility

(-) Keine Mülltrennung, keine Gefährdungsbeurteilung der Arbeitsplätze. (+) Kostenlose, sehr gute Kantine für (fast) alle.

Collegiality

Nicht besonders groß, aufgrund vieler kleiner "Unterabteilungen"

Interaction with older colleagues

Die älteren Kollegen hatten überwiegend Manager Funktionen.

Leadership behavior

Bei 4 Managern, denen ich zuarbeitete, waren 2 "unaufällig", 1 ok aber führungsschwach,, 1 cholerischer, teils überforderter Manager funkte quer, um "Macht" zu demonstrieren.

Working conditions

Schöner Arbeitsplatz an und für sich. Jedoch viel Rücksichtslosigkeit durch Lärmbelästigung durch Kollegen aus der nahe gelegenen Kaffee-Ecke und Besprechungen mit Managern mitten mitten im Open-Space Office, statt den kleinen - meist leerstehenden - Besprechungsraum zu nutzen. Häufige Störungen durch meine Funktion als "Go-To" und Mädchen-für-alles.

Communication

Infos nur auf Nachfrage, wenn überhaupt.

Equality

Als Zeitarbeiter ist man selten "gleichberechtigt". Wenige Frauen in der Abteilung. Viele Mitarbeiter über Werkverträge tätig.

Interesting tasks

Wenig eigenständige Aufgabengebiete, viele routinearbeiten.

What I like about the employer

Einziger Pluspunkt ist die Kantine, die jedoch auch kurze Pausen ermöglicht!

What I dislike about the employer

Vieles

Suggestions for improvement

Working atmosphere

..sehr starker koreanischer Einfluss mit allen Facetten!

Image

Als Automarke gut, als Arbeitgeber das Gegenteil

Work-Life Balance

....gibt es quasi nicht! Arbeiten, Arbeiten, Arbeiten - wenn man früher gehen muss, wird der Umstand schon negativ wahrgenommen. Es lebe die Face-time... Home-Office und Flexibilität - was ist das?

Career/Professional development

Es gibt Möglichkeiten, aber begrenzte Budgets und keine Zeit teilzunehmen. Mehr Schein als sein

Salary/Social benefits

Das Gehalt entspricht nicht dem Markt, keine Belohnung der individuellen Leistung beim Bonus - Suozalleistungen quasi nicht vorhanden

Environmental and social responsibility

Mülltrennung - was ist das?

Collegiality

Die Kollegen halten zusammen, was in dieser Umgebung auch notwendig ist, um motiviert zu sein

Leadership behavior

Es gibt einige gute Vorgesetzte, die Mehrheit leider nicht (Nasenfaktor, keine Transparenz) und selbst gute Vorgesetzter müssen noch den koreanischen Gegenpart überzeugen

Working conditions

Wenn man auf 80-er Jahre Stil steht, ist es toll!

Communication

Es gibt keine strukturierte interne Kommunikation - man erfährt eher über die Presse, was es Neues gibt!

Equality

Nicht gegeben!

Interesting tasks

Interessante Aufgaben gibt es, aber so viele, dass man quasi nicht mehr nach Hause kommt oder mal entspannt Urlaub machen kann!

What I like about the employer

Multikulturelle und internationale Tätigkeit
Klasse Kantine.
Viele Herausforderungen

What I dislike about the employer

Die Achtung vorm Mitarbeiter ist gering.
Nicht selbstkritisch und hinterfragend, zu viele Selbstdarsteller.
Was passiert wenn KIA nicht mehr Geld verdient, was dann?
Sobald etwas aus Korea kommt, wird es auf Gedeih und Verderb gemacht, ohne es zu hinterfragen ob es so Sinn macht oder doch etwas angepasst werden muss.

Suggestions for improvement

Working atmosphere

So lange man gute Ergebnisse abliefert ist alles in Butter. Prozesse, Fehlanzeige!
Bettelgänge damit ich mein Budget freigezeichnet bekomme.

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Wird nicht so wahrgenommen.
CI was ist das?

Work-Life Balance

Schaffe schaffe!
Homeoffice Fehlanzeige.
Flexibele Arbeitszeiten ist in der koreanischen Welt ein Fremdwort.
(Siehe Südkorea, da werden die Firmen verpflichtet den Strom abzuschalten damit die MA heim gehen.)

Career/Professional development

Zu lean aufgestellt um Perspektiven zu bieten.

Salary/Social benefits

Gehalt durchschnittlich.
Kantine ist weltweit kostenlos.
Betriebliche Altersversorgung Fehlanzeige, nur durch Entgeldumwandlung möglich.

Environmental and social responsibility

Das "Grüne" Fahrzeugportfolio ist beispielhaft. Da ist VW und Co ganz weit weg.

Collegiality

Man hilft und achtet sich, wobei ein Koreaner mehr "Wert" ist.

Interaction with older colleagues

Schlechte Beispiele erlebt.
Langjährige Betriebsjubiläen werden nur mit einem Bonus geehrt, aber nicht vor der Belegschaft.

Leadership behavior

Unterirdisch, direkter sowie indirekter Vorgesetzter verdienen minus ein Stern.
Zum Beispiel "Indirekter" schmückt sich gern mit fremden Federn, sobald es ein Problem gibt wird ein Schuldiger gefunden.

Working conditions

Grossraumbüros, je nach Abteilung hat man mehr oder weniger Platz.
Klimaanlage gibt's es nicht.

Communication

Bessert sich etwas. Aber Mitarbeitern nach dem Mund reden hilft nicht. Keine Eigeninitiative des Managements.
Jährlich globale Mitarbeiterzufriedenheitsbefragung, MA Antwort kann eingegrenzt. Ergebnisse sieht man nur Ausgewähltes. Da man nicht alles sieht wird man mit Dingen konfrontiert die man noch nicht gesehen hat.

Equality

Es wird stellenweise schon unterschieden ob du ein Koreaner bist oder nicht.

Interesting tasks

Herausforderungen ohne Ende.

What I like about the employer

Wachsende Marke, Location: Frankfurt Innenstadt, Innovation, work-life balance, Kantine kostenfrei

What I dislike about the employer

Kein Homeoffice erlaubt. Es muss sich ändern.

Suggestions for improvement

What I like about the employer

Essen in der Kantine

What I dislike about the employer

Alles was schon oben gennant wurde.

Suggestions for improvement

Working atmosphere

befriedigend zwischen Kollegen der gleichen Abteilung, allerdings nicht zwischen koreaner und europäern , denn koreaner haben immer das letzte Wort.

Career/Professional development

Kurse sind angeboten, damit Personalabteilung eine gute Auswertung von den koreaner bekommt.

Salary/Social benefits

Gehalt ist im Durschnitt 25% weniger als was auf die Markt angeboten wird.

Environmental and social responsibility

Autos sind sehr innefizient und Umweltschädlich

Interaction with older colleagues

es gibt kaum älteren Kollegen

Leadership behavior

die Vorgesetzten sind leider keine Inspiration für die Mitarbeiter, es gibt sehr viele (absichtlich) unklarheit in der Kommunikation, in dem keiner ein klares Feedback gibt, oder um die Entwicklung von seiner Karriere Sorge macht.

Working conditions

unfair Bedingungen nicht nur im Vertrag aber insbesonderes bei dem Ende des Arbeitsverhältnis bzw. Kündigung.

Communication

es gibt kaum kommunikation zwischen koreaner und Angestelltern, mangelnden Infos sind die Norm in der Kommunikation zwischen verschiedenen Abteilungen.

Equality

Frauen sind deutlich schlechter als Männern bazahlt. Gehalt ist im Durschnitt 25% weniger als was auf die Markt angeboten wird. Besonderes für die, die Kia als erster Arbeitgeber ausgewählt haben.

Interesting tasks

Wenn man gerne Befehle verfolgt, ohne Gedanken zu machen wie man die Sachen verbessern kann, dann ist es die perfekte Firma. Wenn man versucht zu argumentieren, hört von dem Vorgestzer: "Entscheidungen müssen nicht auf Logik basiert sein! Tue was ich sage."