Star Media Group Berhad Employee Reviews & Ratings

On call, no work life balance

The benefits are not so good. HR, especially that person whose name starts with K, was quite horrible. Really tried to shortchange me in every way and trap me into agreeing to everything. Glad I found out when I spoke to the person who interviewed me. What was agreed between them after my interview did not translate into my offer.

Culture wise, it's not good

Many of the staff are old timers. Younger staff don’t have much opportunities to grow as the top positions are all held by those who have been there for decades. Over the years, the benefits have also been reduced a lot.

Bureaucracy and red tapes can sometimes get in the way

bosses are manic and always have to impress the big boss even if it doesnt make sense, even if u suggested a logic and simpler way, bosses wont fight for u but follow big boss.

Need to digitalize some processes for better efficiency

super busy, unsystematic, last-minute, no proper plan, low salary, basically just exploiting u

the whole management, HR, bosses, have no empathy. Underlying racism within every decision made. You are expected to be a robot and work for the company and no such thing as personal problems are allowed to interfere your work.

worst supervisor. didn't teach newbies. expects people to know everything by yourself. very toxic.

Pay and benefits could be better

Terrible GM to work for. Not recommended.

Quite traditional and low salary package

No direction and no career advancement

Bad traffic around the office

impersonal, elitism, race quota, management-bias NUJ president, forcing people to a role they don't want or risk being terminated, long stretch of working days (some doesn't have off days more than a week), unfriendly, unstable, and hostile environment to married people and those who has kids.

Slow-paced company and unclear company direction

the print industry itself as they are promoting traditional media

Low basic salary, but pretty good additional benefits (transport claims, medical coverage, off days)

- i hate the yellow lights in the department. please la change it. - the salary offer for fresh grads considered low.

Every time last minute since it is news / media

Political pressure, union-busting work by company, attempts to reduce benefits by HR. HR is slow and inefficient.

Not very competitive pay, work in silo

I encountered some of the most ineffective middle manager who focus solely on 'managing' rather than truly leading. They are quick to assign blame when things go wrong. My experience working under a manager who lacked an understanding of the process but still demanded flawless results was particularly challenging. It wasn’t until high-performing employees started leaving that they began to panic, shifting blame onto others. Gaslighting is a common issue that should be addressed, and many middle manager need to develop leadership skills rather than just giving orders. The middle manager that I have worked under tend to be overly emotional, which is not an ideal trait for effective leadership. Rather than approaching situations with a level-headed and solution-oriented mindset, they often let emotions dictate their decisions, leading to inconsistency and unnecessary tension in the workplace. Strong leadership requires composure, rational thinking, and the ability to guide teams through challenges without personal biases or emotional reactions getting in the way.

- some things are a bit dated - can be fast-paced, not exactly suitable for fresh grad unless you join as a graduate trainee - salary is lower than market rate - little increment - slower career growth - work life balance is near non-existent during assignment peak

Lot of work load might be tired

Toxic Managers and boss on some departments, but some are helpful

Salary is still under market value and benefits are not given enough for hardworking employees

Management lack of strategy Not investing in its people Office outlook and environment very dated and dull

Not too strong in benefit package wise

Salary is low and they use bonus to divide into 12 months instead

Not suitable for long term career growth in this age due to threats of traditional marketing. Most employees especially the operational side are demotivated.

As long you have the correct strings attached you can sail far even if you're just an empty vessel. It's fine as long you talk the talk the bosses wants to hear and never go against it even if it's wrong. With time on your side, you'd slowly move up.

unsupportive culture and toxic HR

Always be on your toes

- Certain smaller departments/teams will feel negleted/not prioritised because the return/revenue/impact that the particular team can generate/bring to the company is not as significant as the others. - There are a certain group of long-serving employees that has more significant influence across the management & board hence were more "taken care" of and given certain leeway. - Certain roles that are advertised for hire are replacement roles that have many short serviced predecessors because the particular team's structure & formation are challenging for the new joiners (especially more senior roles) to fit in & adapt accordingly. - Company currently does not focus on L&D or relevant culture-related training hence do not expect that if you are deciding to join. - You need to really know & stay focused on the reason/what you want to achieve if you decided to accept the relevant job offer or else you might be lost yourself along the way

Salary lower than expected in media

Too often they were prepared to "bet the farm" on ideas with minimal research and due diligence They through projects around as a means of masking poor performance issues. The leadership of the press centre was abysmal.

Advertising revenue trumps stories for the people.

Low pay and not a good outlook for the future due to dying industry

Slightly old office and quite hard to find good food other than at the cafe and the mamak below.

Minimal professional growth and graveyard hours

Too much work life balance could be a bad thing. The company vision is there, the mission is there, the values is also there, but no action plan being executed. You know the saying, walking the talk? Well, they don't. They really don't enforce at all. There's this two halves that never seems to coincide one another; the print and the digital platform don't ever get to see eye to eye. The current CEO understands the importance of digital and print needs to be as one, but never drive it hard!

Uncertain future with constant Company restructuring

management should recognise talents within the company to retain them before they move somewhere else

Job scope not advance in term of technology Old timers prefer to get job done in their way

Boring environment, as a media company The Star head office seems like a very dull corporate environment. Very traditional concept, office is quite rundown and old. People are not friendly. Very tough for newbies to blend in with current seniors. Some senior news editors are arrogant. Lots of politics and backstabbing. Quite normal for media company though. Not recommended for fresh grads to start here. I've seen editors taking advantage of young writers. No proper training and seniors are very bossy. Plus basic pay for fresh grads with degree is quite low compared to other media companies.

Stressful but fun, so it's manageable.\

If you get absorbed into one of their subsidiaries, you won't get the same benefits. Even medical benefits also don't have. And unless you get into the big subsidiaries like mStar and Suria, you won't be getting the full support in smaller subsidiaries

the increment is quite difficult