Glassdoor
Glassdoor is a platform where employees and former employees anonymously review companies and their management, providing salary information, interview experiences, and workplace insights. The service requires users to contribute content before accessing reviews through its 'give-to-get' policy.
Score generated by AI agents based on publicly cited evidence and reviewed by the project maintainer. Not independently validated. Last assessed 2026-09-27.
Score History
Timeline events are AI-curated from public reporting. Score trajectory is derived from documented events.
Glassdoor went live in public beta in June 2008, collecting company reviews and real salaries and showing them anonymously to members, funded by a $3 million Benchmark round. It had no employer-facing products, and a small, self-selected user base contributed the content. Interview reviews followed in 2009 and the first Employees' Choice awards that December.
The June 2010 launch of fee-based Enhanced Employer Profiles began Glassdoor's employer monetization, and some $200 million in venture funding through 2016 paid for international expansion and product work. The product kept improving for users, with Know Your Worth salary estimates in 2016 and salary ranges in job listings in 2017. The give-to-get wall and a 2016 terms-of-service email that exposed users' addresses and added a class-action waiver were early frictions.
Recruit Holdings completed its $1.2 billion purchase of Glassdoor, putting it under the same owner as Indeed; analysts quoted by SHRM expected employer prices at both sites to keep rising. The Ninth Circuit ruling forcing disclosure of anonymous users in 2017 had already shown the limits of anonymity, and a 2019 WSJ investigation found suspicious single-month review spikes at 400+ companies and documented employer campaigns to inflate ratings. Founder Robert Hohman handed the CEO role to Christian Sutherland-Wong from January 2020.
COVID-19 triggered cuts of 300 jobs, 30% of the workforce. The Indeed partnership of July 2020 began combining recruiting products, and by March 2023 employers trying to post jobs on Glassdoor were sent to Indeed. Glassdoor added diversity and inclusion ratings in 2020 and acquired Fishbowl in September 2021 to add community features. In early 2023 Indeed cut about 2,200 jobs and Glassdoor about 140 even though HR Technology revenue had grown 7.7% in dollars in FY2022 at a 30.7% adjusted EBITDA margin. The 2022 Zuru ruling forced Glassdoor to unmask anonymous reviewers, though it won a New York anti-SLAPP dismissal the same year.
The Fishbowl integration and 'real talk' rebrand made full name, job title and employer mandatory, enforced by an impossible-to-dismiss pop-up. In March 2024 TechCrunch reported names added to profiles without consent, and Forrester reported users deleting accounts. Meanwhile Recruit cut Indeed and Glassdoor staff in 2023 and 2024 while running a 600 billion yen buyback and paying out 210.3% of FY2024 profit, Glassdoor closed its offices, direct job posting gave way to paid Indeed listings, and AI-generated reviews rose to an estimated 29% of S&P 500 company reviews.
Recruit announced 1,300 HR Technology layoffs and folded Glassdoor's operations into Indeed; CEO Sutherland-Wong left and COO Owen Humphries became president. From November 2025 new users had to sign in with Indeed, existing users had to link accounts by April 2026, and on July 1, 2026 Glassdoor legally merged into Indeed, Inc., operating under Indeed's terms. Recruit kept returning more than its profit to shareholders, with a 143.5% payout ratio in FY2025 and a new 350 billion yen buyback.
Alternatives
Independent salary and compensation comparison platform with verified offers and detailed breakdowns by company, level, and location. Particularly strong for tech roles where Glassdoor salary data is often outdated or inaccurate. Free to use, no 'give-to-get' gating. Does not cover employer culture reviews — pair with Blind for that.
Anonymous professional community where employees discuss salaries, workplace culture, and company-specific topics. Requires verification of employment via a work email to sign up, and says it does not store email addresses. Easy switch — free to use. Often more candid than Glassdoor, but skews toward the tech sector.
Dimensional Breakdown
Summaries below were written by AI agents based on the cited evidence. They are editorial interpretations, not independent research findings.
Dimension History
Timeline (52 events)
Glassdoor Launches Public Beta with 250 Companies
Glassdoor went live in public beta as a site that collects company reviews and real salaries from employees and displays them anonymously to members. At launch it covered about 250 companies with roughly 3,300 reviews; the startup was backed by a $3 million round from Benchmark Capital raised in March 2008, nine months after its June 2007 incorporation.
Glassdoor Adds Interview Reviews Feature
Glassdoor introduced a Job Interview Questions and Reviews section, expanding beyond salary and company reviews. At launch the section contained 2,000 interview reviews for 1,000 companies across 40 countries, adding a new dimension to the platform's transparency mission.
First Employees' Choice Awards Recognize Best Places to Work
Glassdoor launched its inaugural Employees' Choice Awards for the Best Places to Work, ranking companies based entirely on employee-submitted reviews. The awards became an annual institution in the HR industry, with Bain & Company and Google appearing on the list every year since inception.
Enhanced Employer Profiles Launched as Fee-Based Product
Glassdoor debuted Enhanced Employer Profiles, allowing companies to customize their pages with logos, 'Why Work for Us' sections, photos, and social media feeds for a fee. Early adopters included Accenture, Adobe, and Zillow. This marked Glassdoor's first monetization of employer-facing services and the beginning of a two-tier review system.
Glassdoor Raises $20M Series D for International Expansion
Glassdoor raised $20 million in a Series D round led by DAG Ventures, with participation from Benchmark, Sutter Hill, and Battery Ventures. With 40% of traffic already coming from outside the U.S., the funds targeted international expansion and product development.
Glassdoor Launches UK Site as First European Offering
Glassdoor launched its localized UK website, marking its first dedicated European offering. The site experienced better-than-expected growth, and by March 2014 the company had opened a London office to begin selling recruiting services to UK employers.
Glassdoor Raises $50M Series E Led by Tiger Global
Glassdoor raised a $50 million Series E led by Tiger Global Management, with Dragoneer joining existing investors, bringing total capitalization to roughly $93 million. The company reported a 160% compound annual revenue growth rate over the prior three years, more than 22 million registered members and data on nearly 300,000 companies in 190 countries, and planned an aggressive international expansion ahead of what chairman Rich Barton called an increasingly likely IPO.
Glassdoor Raises $70M Series F Led by Google Capital
Glassdoor raised $70 million in a Series F round led by Google Capital (now CapitalG), with continued participation from Tiger Global. The round brought total funding to $160 million and valued the company at just under $1 billion. The investment was earmarked for international expansion and product development.
Glassdoor Raises $40M Series H, Valued at $1 Billion
Glassdoor raised $40 million in a Series H round led by T. Rowe Price, valuing the company at around $1 billion, with Battery Ventures, Google Capital, Sutter Hill and Tiger Global participating. CEO Robert Hohman called the round 'opportunistic', said Glassdoor had raised about $200 million to date, and named T. Rowe as the kind of investor he would want once Glassdoor became a public company.
Terms-of-Service Email Exposes Users' Addresses; Class Action Filed
A Glassdoor email announcing updated terms of service put recipients' addresses in the visible field instead of BCC, sent in batches of 1,000 to about 2% of its 30 million monthly users, so each could see 999 others' addresses. A user filed a class action; her lawyer noted the same terms update added an arbitration provision barring class actions, which users could opt out of only by mailing a form. Glassdoor apologized and said it was taking corrective steps.
Glassdoor Launches Free 'Know Your Worth' Salary Estimator
Glassdoor launched Know Your Worth in beta, a free tool that uses salary reports shared on Glassdoor and local job-market trends to give each user a personalized, private estimate of their market pay, recalculated weekly.
Glassdoor Adds Salary Estimates to Job Listings
Glassdoor began showing estimated base salary ranges in job search results and job descriptions, noting that fewer than one in ten online job listings included pay data.
Ninth Circuit Compels Glassdoor to Unmask Anonymous Users
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed denial of Glassdoor's motion to quash a grand jury subpoena seeking identities of anonymous reviewers who posted about a government contractor under investigation for wire fraud. The EFF called the ruling 'disturbing,' warning it would chill anonymous online speech. Glassdoor was forced to disclose user identities despite First Amendment objections.
Glassdoor Deploys AI-Human Hybrid Review Moderation System
MIT Technology Review profiled Glassdoor's machine learning system for detecting fraudulent reviews and trolling. The AI scanned for patterns like multiple five-star or one-star reviews and performed text analysis, reducing human moderator workload to reviewing about half of all posts. The system's criteria remained opaque to users.
Glassdoor Interviews Banks for a 2018 IPO
Bloomberg reported that Glassdoor had begun talks with banks that could manage an initial public offering in the second half of 2018; people familiar with the matter said the company was breaking even with roughly 30% year-on-year growth. Less than three months later Glassdoor agreed instead to an all-cash sale to Recruit Holdings.
Recruit Holdings Acquires Glassdoor for $1.2 Billion
Recruit Holdings, the Japanese owner of Indeed, announced a definitive agreement to acquire Glassdoor for $1.2 billion in an all-cash transaction. The deal consolidated two major employment platforms under one parent. Goldman Sachs advised Recruit; Qatalyst advised Glassdoor. CEO Robert Hohman would continue to lead the company.
HR Dive Analysis: Recruit Acquisition Reduces Employment Market Competition
HR Dive reported that the Glassdoor purchase made Recruit Holdings, already owner of Indeed, loom large in the recruiting space, with one expert noting that the data 'treasure trove' Recruit gained was what its competitors should watch most, and speculating that rival staffing firms would respond with acquisitions of their own.
WSJ Investigation Exposes Employer Manipulation of Glassdoor Ratings
A Wall Street Journal investigation found unusual spikes in positive Glassdoor reviews at companies including SpaceX, SAP and LinkedIn; SpaceX and SAP galvanized employees to post reviews to make Glassdoor's Best Places to Work list. At mortgage lender Guaranteed Rate, CEO Victor Ciardelli had his team enlist employees likely to post positive reviews, and hundreds of five-star ratings lifted the company's rating from 2.6 to 4.1 stars.
Co-Founder Robert Hohman Steps Down as CEO
Glassdoor co-founder and CEO Robert Hohman stepped down after 12 years leading the company, transitioning to chairman. Christian Sutherland-Wong, who had served as president and COO since February 2018, was appointed CEO effective January 6, 2020. The transition occurred roughly 14 months after the Recruit Holdings acquisition.
EFF Intervenes to Protect Anonymous Glassdoor Reviewer from Kraken Subpoena
The Electronic Frontier Foundation filed a motion in Marin County Superior Court to quash a subpoena seeking the identity of a former Kraken employee who posted an anonymous Glassdoor review. Kraken had sued ten Doe defendants, alleging they breached their severance agreements, and sought to identify them. The EFF argued the litigation was designed to 'harass and silence' former employees.
Glassdoor Lays Off 300 Workers, 30% of Workforce
Glassdoor laid off 300 employees, or 30% of its workforce, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit recruiting; CEO Sutherland-Wong wrote that employers had 'dramatically reduced their recruiting.' Most of the cuts came from the Chicago office, with 81 in Marin County. Glassdoor had already paused hiring and cut executive pay, with Sutherland-Wong taking a 50% reduction in total cash compensation for 2020.
Indeed-Glassdoor Services Partnership Announced
Indeed and Glassdoor announced a formal services partnership to develop combined recruiting solutions, including co-branded employer branding bundles. Employers could access job seeker audiences across both platforms through Indeed's advertising products. The partnership signaled the beginning of operational integration between the sister companies.
Glassdoor Launches Diversity & Inclusion Ratings
Glassdoor added a Diversity & Inclusion Rating as its sixth workplace-factor rating, letting employees rate their satisfaction with diversity and inclusion at current or former employers, alongside other new D&I transparency features.
Glassdoor Acquires Fishbowl to Square Up to LinkedIn
Glassdoor, through parent Recruit Holdings, acquired Fishbowl, a semi-anonymous professional networking app with about 1 million users, for undisclosed terms. TechCrunch framed the deal as a move to compete with LinkedIn by adding community discussion features. Fishbowl required users to verify their identities, a requirement later extended to Glassdoor users.
Appeals Court Affirms Dismissal of Law Firm's Defamation Suit Against Glassdoor
After Glassdoor refused a New York law firm's demand to remove an anonymous negative review, the firm sued Glassdoor for defamation. A trial court dismissed the claim, and the Appellate Division, First Department affirmed the dismissal on May 19, 2022, though it held New York's amended anti-SLAPP law was not retroactive and denied Glassdoor attorney's fees.
Court Orders Glassdoor to Unmask Anonymous Reviewers in Zuru Case
A Northern California magistrate judge ordered Glassdoor to disclose the identities of anonymous employees who posted six negative reviews about New Zealand toy company Zuru. The judge ruled that reviewer anonymity was not protected under the First Amendment because the reviewers were not demonstrated to be U.S. citizens. Glassdoor noted it had defended user anonymity in over 100 prior cases.
Browser Extensions Emerge to Bypass Glassdoor Registration Wall
The 'Bypass Glassdoor Wall' Chrome extension, which removes Glassdoor's login wall so content can be read without an account, was last updated in November 2022 and has about 5,000 users. Similar tools such as 'Glassdoor Mallet' also remove Glassdoor's paywall overlays, reflecting user frustration with forced account creation and give-to-get gating.
Employers Posting Jobs on Glassdoor Redirected to Indeed
RecTech Media reported that employers trying to post a job on Glassdoor were directed to post on Indeed, since Indeed postings now powered Glassdoor, and that Recruit was positioning Glassdoor as an employer-branding arm with Indeed as the job marketplace. It also noted that search interest in Glassdoor had been falling since the 2018 acquisition.
Indeed Lays Off 2,200 (15% of Staff) in First of Three Annual Cuts
Indeed CEO Chris Hyams told staff that about 2,200 employees, roughly 15% of the company, would be let go, with cuts from nearly every team at Indeed and Indeed Flex. Glassdoor separately cut about 140 jobs, almost 15% of its workforce, earlier in 2023. This marked the first of three consecutive years of significant workforce reductions at Recruit's HR Technology businesses.
Fishbowl Integration Imposes Identity Verification on All Glassdoor Users
Glassdoor integrated Fishbowl's social features in July 2023 and changed its sign-up process to require full name, job title and employer. Returning users without a name on file faced an impossible-to-dismiss pop-up saying a real name was 'required to verify your profile.' Glassdoor said user information would 'automatically cross-populate between all Glassdoor services, including our community app Fishbowl.'
Glassdoor Rebrands as 'Real Talk' Community Platform
Alongside the community launch, Glassdoor unveiled a rebrand by agency Koto positioning it as 'a thriving community for workplace conversations' with the tagline 'Where work talk gets real.' The rebrand included a new logo, color palette and a custom typeface, 'Glassdoor Sans.' Glassdoor had launched the community features to lift an active user base that had been flat at 55 million for nearly two years.
Glassdoor Co-Founds Coalition for Trusted Reviews
Amazon, Booking.com, Expedia Group, Glassdoor, Tripadvisor, and Trustpilot launched the Coalition for Trusted Reviews to define best practices for hosting reviews and share fake-review detection methods. The members had first met at a Tripadvisor-organized Fake Reviews Conference in October 2022.
Glassdoor Closes All Remaining Offices, Goes Fully Remote
Glassdoor announced the closure of its last remaining offices in Chicago (about 70,000 sq ft across two locations) and its San Francisco headquarters (57,636 sq ft at 300 Mission St), saying it would sublease the space as it 'double[s] down on being a remote-first company.' The company had been fully remote since March 3, 2020.
Glassdoor Adds Real Names to Profiles Without User Consent
TechCrunch reported that Glassdoor was extracting users' full names from customer support email headers and adding them to profiles without explicit consent. A user named Monica discovered her real name had been attached to her profile after emailing support. Glassdoor told her the name addition was 'required' and would not compromise review anonymity. NPR, Fortune, and Forrester covered the story as a major privacy crisis.
Privacy Advocates Warn Glassdoor Real Name Policy Undermines Anonymity Promise
Surveillance Technology Oversight Project founder Albert Fox Cahn stated 'You can't both be verified and anonymous,' challenging Glassdoor's claim that requiring real names would not compromise review anonymity. Privacy advocates warned that collecting real names increases the risk that future subpoenas, data breaches, or legal compulsion could identify anonymous reviewers.
Forrester: Glassdoor's Mishandling of User Data Has Some Users Eyeing the Exits
Forrester published an analysis saying Glassdoor covertly added users' real names, jobs and job titles to previously anonymous profiles, that headlines were driving account deletions, and that the only way to remove the data was to delete one's account. It quoted one user calling the change a 'betrayal of trust' and noted competitors 'smell blood in the water.'
Job Board Doctor: Glassdoor Hurt Its Brand Through Sloppy Fishbowl Integration
Industry publication Job Board Doctor published analysis arguing that Glassdoor damaged its brand through the poorly executed Fishbowl integration. The analysis detailed how the auto-enrollment of Glassdoor users into Fishbowl accounts, combined with the real name requirement, represented a fundamental break with the platform's founding promise of anonymity.
Indeed and Glassdoor Cut 1,000 Jobs in Second Year of Layoffs
Indeed cut about 1,000 jobs, roughly 8% of the company, with CEO Chris Hyams citing a global slowdown in hiring and a need to simplify operations. Fortune later counted these as 2024 layoffs at Indeed and Glassdoor, the second consecutive year of mass cuts following about 2,200 in 2023.
Recruit Holdings Authorizes 600 Billion Yen Share Buyback Program
Recruit Holdings' board approved a share repurchase program with a maximum purchase price of 600 billion yen (~$4 billion), targeting up to 87 million shares by July 2025. The program was announced concurrent with continued workforce reductions at Indeed and Glassdoor, highlighting the contrast between shareholder returns and employee investment.
Glassdoor Posts Public Alert on B&M Stores for Review Manipulation
Glassdoor posted a public 'Inflated Reviews' alert on UK retailer B&M's employer profile after finding evidence of aggressive attempts to artificially boost the company's rating. Glassdoor stated such alerts are reserved for 'particularly aggressive' manipulation attempts. B&M said the banner appeared 'some years ago' and they had since implemented new policies.
By 2025, Glassdoor No Longer Offers Direct Job Postings; Only Paid Indeed Jobs Appear
BetterTeam's January 2025 review reported that, since partnering with Indeed, Glassdoor no longer offers job posting plans: employers must pay for a job posting on Indeed for it to appear on Glassdoor, since free Indeed posts are not shown there. The change forced employers who wanted visibility on Glassdoor to become paying Indeed customers.
Recruit Holdings Completes 600 Billion Yen Buyback Ahead of Schedule
Recruit Holdings completed its 600 billion yen (~$4 billion) share repurchase program five months early, buying back 64.6 million shares between July 2024 and February 2025. The buyback was completed while the company continued cutting thousands of jobs at Indeed and Glassdoor, with a third round of layoffs announced just five months later.
Originality.ai Study: 29.45% of Glassdoor Reviews Are AI-Generated
An Originality.ai study found that AI-generated reviews on Glassdoor for S&P 500 companies surged 376.3% from 2022 to 2024, rising from 6.18% to 29.45% of all reviews. The study raised concerns that nearly one-third of reviews on major company pages were unreliable, undermining Glassdoor's core value proposition of authentic employee insights.
Recruit Holdings Reports 15.5% Profit Growth Despite Layoffs
Recruit Holdings reported FY2024 (year to March 2025) results showing a 15.5% increase in profit attributable to owners of the parent, reaching 408.5 billion yen, and a 21.9% rise in operating income to 490.5 billion yen. Total payouts to shareholders in dividends and share repurchases reached 859.1 billion yen, a total payout ratio of 210.3%, more than double the year's profit.
Glassdoor Folded into Indeed; CEO Sutherland-Wong Departs
Recruit Holdings announced Glassdoor's operations would be formally integrated into Indeed, with CEO Christian Sutherland-Wong departing after 10 years effective October 1, 2025. Owen Humphries was named President of Glassdoor, reporting directly to Recruit CEO Hisayuki 'Deko' Idekoba. The move represented the end of Glassdoor's organizational independence.
Third Consecutive Year of Layoffs: 1,300 More Jobs Cut
Recruit Holdings laid off approximately 1,300 workers at Indeed and Glassdoor, representing 6% of the HR Technology segment workforce. The cuts targeted R&D and 'people and sustainability' teams. Combined with 2,200 cuts in 2023 and 1,000 in 2024, total layoffs reached approximately 4,500 over three years while the segment's revenue grew 11.3%.
Glassdoor Begins Requiring Indeed Account for New Users
Starting November 18, 2025, new Glassdoor users were required to log in using an Indeed account. Existing users were given until April 20, 2026 to connect their Glassdoor account to Indeed or lose platform access. Profile data including name, email, and resume would sync between the two platforms through a 'Connected Profile.'
Updated Terms Tie Glassdoor to Indeed and Expand AI Use of Personal Data
Glassdoor's revised terms and privacy policy, effective November 18, 2025 for new users and December 18, 2025 for existing users, made Indeed Login required for new users and warned that from April 20, 2026 a connected account may be required for full access. They added provisions on AI-generated content, on how personal data is used by Glassdoor and its affiliates to power and improve AI features and for labor market research, and on how violations of affiliates' terms may affect access to Glassdoor.
Multiple Integration Deadlines Loom as Indeed Tightens Control
Job Board Doctor reported converging deadlines: organic visibility for single-source job feeds on Indeed would end on March 31, 2026, and existing Glassdoor users had until April 20, 2026 to link their accounts to Indeed or lose access. Once linked, accounts cannot be unlinked except by deleting one of them. The article characterized these changes as Indeed 'turning the screws.'
Recruit Holdings Launches New Buyback of Up to 350 Billion Yen
Recruit's board approved share repurchases of up to 64 million shares (4.58% of shares outstanding) and 350 billion yen between April 1 and November 30, 2026, saying buybacks were the best way to improve capital efficiency and maximize shareholder returns.
Recruit FY2025 Results: 143.5% Payout Ratio
Recruit reported record FY2025 results, with profit attributable to owners up 21.6% to 496.9 billion yen and HR Technology revenue up 6.3% to 1,458.4 billion yen. It returned 713.1 billion yen in dividends and share buybacks, a total payout ratio of 143.5%, and guided to further HR Technology growth driven by 'monetization development and enhanced efficiency.'
Glassdoor Legally Merges into Indeed, Inc.
Glassdoor LLC merged into Indeed, Inc. on July 1, 2026, ending its existence as a separate subsidiary; the brand and anonymous reviews continue, but the site now operates under Indeed's terms of use and privacy policy. Reworked noted that Recruit's CFO attributed the HR Technology margin jump to lower personnel expenses, and that US job postings on Indeed fell about 7% in the year while average revenue per US job rose 17%.
Evidence (62 citations)
D1: User Value Erosion
D2: Business Customer Exploitation
D3: Shareholder Extraction
D4: Lock-in & Switching Costs
D5: Twiddling & Algorithmic Opacity
D6: Dark Patterns
D7: Advertising & Monetization Pressure
D8: Competitive Conduct
D9: Labor & Governance
D10: Regulatory & Legal Posture
Scoring Log (8 entries)
Checked 96 items (41 timeline, 50 evidence, 3 milestones, 2 alternatives) + prose. 55 verified, 27 corrected (14 date-only), 14 re-sourced, 0 removed. Invented: Blind user counts 3.5M and 5M (Globe and Mail 2024: 10M+ verified; TechCrunch 2023: 8M+ in 2021); '$100M subscription revenue by 2022' traced only to AI-generated Vizologi page; Forrester 'betrayal of trust' was a user quote, not analysts' view. Also fixed: HR Dive CPC misattribution, unsupported 159%/177% payout ratios, SpaceX mugs, Feb 18 2026 deadline, Cahn quote re-sourced to WIRED, Humphries not an Indeed exec, GDPR claim.
57->54. Since Feb 2026: existing users forced to link Indeed accounts by 2026-04-20; Recruit 350bn yen buyback (2026-03-31) and FY2025 143.5% payout; Glassdoor legally merged into Indeed, Inc. 2026-07-01 under Indeed terms; unverified ransomware claim (Aug 2026, no data released, not added). D1 8->7 (recalibration: severe degradation but core reviews/salaries still usable, no satisfaction-collapse data for 8-9), D2 6->5 (recalibration: pay-to-play profiles and paid-Indeed-only jobs fit 4-5; take-rate/captivity criteria for 6-7 not shown for Glassdoor itself), D3 5->6 (event: FY2025 143.5% payout, new 350bn yen buyback, CFO crediting lower personnel expenses alongside 2025 layoffs), D5 6->5 (recalibration: opaque moderation and featured reviews, but no metric manipulation; public inflated-review alerts), D10 5->4 (recalibration: court unmaskings were cases Glassdoor fought; anti-SLAPP win; negatives are privacy practices, no enforcement). Eras: 'Transparency Pioneer' re-dated 2008-06-01->2008-06-10 (public beta); 'Venture-Fueled Growth' re-dated 2012-10-01->2010-06-24 (Enhanced Employer Profiles); 'Recruit Acquisition' re-dated 2018-06-01->2018-06-21 (completion); 'COVID & Fishbowl Era' re-dated 2020-05-01->2020-05-07 (layoffs); 'Identity Crisis' + 'Anonymity Betrayed' merged into 'Real-Name Backlash' dated 2023-07-18 (Fishbowl real-name integration); 'Indeed Absorption' re-dated 2026-02-11->2025-07-10 (fold-into-Indeed announcement). Added 2016 email-exposure/arbitration, Know Your Worth, salary estimates, D&I ratings, Kurland anti-SLAPP, 2023 job-posting redirect to Indeed, 2025 terms update, milestone for Indeed merger.
Checked 13 trimmed claims: 1 restored, 6 partly restored, 5 confirmed removed, 1 already present. Restored: 160% revenue CAGR (Pando 2013, re-sourced). Partly: Benchmark seed dated March 2008 not late 2007 (VatorNews); IPO bank interviews added as timeline item 2018-02-26 (Global Venturing reporting Bloomberg), $202M/eight rounds/12 investors left out; 194 Chicago layoffs added as d9 evidence (Crain's 2020-05-11), traffic-decline detail left out; HR Tech revenue growth in FY2022 added as d9 evidence (Recruit FY2022 results); employer price-rise concern added as d2 evidence (SHRM 2018-05-10), CPC wording and HR Dive attribution left out; payout ratio restored as actual 210.3% (Recruit FY2024 Q4 presentation). Confirmed removed: SpaceX mugs, coalition 'irony' framing, office-closure 'cost-cutting' observers, Forrester 'permanent'/Blind/Comparably, 2024 'decline in job postings'. Already present: Indeed login requirement (Nov 18, 2025, timeline item).
[Second regrade this cycle] Follow-up after restore-check: 54->54, current dimensions unchanged; two era cells moved. D3: restored actual FY2024 total payout ratio of 210.3% (859.1bn yen, Recruit FY2024 Q4 presentation) moved 'Real-Name Backlash' (2023-07-18) D3 5->6 (correction: payouts at more than double profit alongside 2024 layoffs and the 600bn yen buyback fit 'large-scale layoffs concurrent with buybacks'; era 49->50); current D3 stays 6 (the FY2024 figure belongs to the prior era; summary updated with it). D9: restored Recruit FY2022 results (HR Technology revenue +7.7% in USD at a 30.7% adjusted EBITDA margin, 17.6bn yen workforce-reduction charges) moved 'COVID & Fishbowl Era' (2020-05-07) D9 3->4 (correction: the early-2023 Indeed/Glassdoor cuts were layoffs during profitability; era 30->31); later eras and current D9 6 unchanged. D2: restored SHRM 2018-05-10 (analysts expecting employer prices to keep rising, a consultant hearing Glassdoor had already raised prices) did not move scores: a forecast fits 'fees beginning to rise' (2-3), so 'Recruit Acquisition' D2 stays 3 and current D2 stays 5. Restored Crain's 194 Chicago layoffs (2020) adds detail to an already-scored event, no move. Eras: all 6 kept with dates and labels; summaries of Recruit Acquisition, COVID & Fishbowl Era and Real-Name Backlash revised. Narratives D2, D3, D9 updated with the restored facts.
Triaged 2026-06-30 (Wave A); no rescore warranted (no material change / changes sub-threshold / flag refuted on verification).
Replaced Indeed Company Reviews — owned by same parent (Recruit Holdings) as Glassdoor, being merged into single operation. Replaced with Levels.fyi (independent).