Still alright after aqcuisition - Software Engineer BlackRock Employee Review

4.0
18 Oct 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The engineering team is pretty small but gets a lot of features done. We are very agile and release code daily. Everyone works on important features since we just don't have time for anything else. The company as a whole is pretty nimble and has lots of smart and passionate people. If you want to learn more about personal finance or investing, just chat with one of our financial advisors. FutureAdvisor was recently acquired by BlackRock. A lot of us were apprehensive about this, since we signed up to work for a startup, not a mega corp. Bo promised that we will stay independent and nothing will change, and so far, that's mostly been true, but I'm not sure if we can continue to be independent indefinitely. For now at least, I'm happy with the salary bump, 401k matching, and promise of performance bonus $ in lieu of stock options upside. The new B2B initiatives are pretty exciting and can significantly increase our customer base, especially with BlackRock backing us.

Cons

We are experiencing all sorts of growing pains. From running out of office space to teams not communicating with each other. Gone are the days when you can find one person who knows every detail on a project. The B2B initiative will definitely produce some unsexy work on the engineering side.

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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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