Good Pay Doesn't Make Up for Horrible Work Environment - Product Manager BlackRock Employee Review

2.0
5 July 2012
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The bonus is the only reason to work here.

Cons

Speaking from someone who worked in IT and not the financial side of the business. Pretty much everything but the pay. Power - and I mean power - is held by very few at the very top and they use it in a very micro managing way. It is definitely a class structure with the haves and have nots. Impossible to get things done when everything has to go through Senior Management first. Constant reorganization of departments and groups in my opinion just shows lack of knowing how to do things and leads to horrible experiences for employees. I had 4 managers in 2 years after the BlackRock acquisition of BGI. Horrible technology. While Aladdin might have great functionality - although I hear differently, the infrastructure it is on is antiquated and with so many acquisitions and too little understanding of how to integrate everything for BlackRock internally is a scrambled mess and has people constantly fire fighting instead of innovating. Oh yeah - I forgot - innovation doesn't matter at BlackRock. Their attitude for technology is if it ain't broke don't fix it. We don't want to use newer technologies because then our people might have some skills they can actually use and want to leave us. I don't know anybody who works there who actually says they like or love their job. But they like the bonus and I guess in the end we work for money. I'm glad I was one of the ones who was able to make my own decision to leave and wasn't part of the trickling of layoffs that continue to happen after so many acquisitions.

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5.0
21 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great company to gain experience

Cons

Not many cons, large organization

3.0
22 Feb 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

1. The executive leaders in the firm are doing a great job 2. Many people in the firm genuinely have a sense of pride working there 3. The (base) compensation is compatible with the market; bonus, however, is another story. 4. For the first ten years of my career in the firm, I made some great memories and made some great friends.

Cons

The culture of my organization started to shift away from a sensible approach and career nurturing to a hostile and confrontational one around 2 years ago. In several all-hands meetings, we were chastised for being "too nice" and were made clear that things would change. The anonymous feedback in the meetings was cut short or eliminated entirely because it didn’t paint a positive picture. In the last 2 years, 1. I was often asked and expected to answer, "Now.. what can you do for me?" in my 1:1 with my latest manager. 2. I was reminded more than once that English is my second language 3. I was reminded more than once by the manager that I should not speak during the meetings I was invited to because they weren’t in the right timing or not appropriate to the subject being discussed during the time There were many of these examples in the last two years with the firm that just seemed inconceivable; nevertheless, I had a great ride and met some genuine people that I consider friends even today.

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