Pros
Since they run lean (no VPs), you do have the ability to play up Learn a lot quickly due to lack of resources Good junior banker team culture, but they bond due to the cons below Alcohol in the office Cool location
Cons
-No culture to get team members out of the office or happy hours when working -95+ hour work weeks -No matching 401k and mandatory 401k deposit removed from your bonus -Bad benefits / insurance -Favor certain employees because they "are bros" -Do not have analyst and associates go through all the FINRA testing, which all other firms invest in their people to do so -Claim to make up the lower salary with bonus, but historically compared to middle market firms is not accurate -Paid associates and above bonus in Mar20, COVID hit, and then barely paid analyst in Jun20 and never made up for it. The bonus was for the previous year and a most companies accrue for it, but I guess they did not? What happens if something like that happens again - be careful. -Zero dollars spent on resources to help junior bankers do their jobs efficiently (industry subscriptions, offshore team, equipment to bind books for meetings, events to take you out of the office) -Horrible tone at the top - Partners are never in, but want you in the office everyday. Tone deaf. -Attempt to be a "volume shop" and have a number of deals die (HC is can be an outlier- The younger HC partner is actually great to work with) -High pitch count, low pitch win rate -Say a "Hybrid" model, but you are only allowed one day a week WFH and they track if you take additional -High junior turnover rate -No recent new partners and partners will fight each other over shared fees -2 Partners have left in the past year -7 days a week on call -Say international, but there is zero communication between other offices -If you work on a deal with the LA office, you will work both Chicago and LA hours, 9am CT - 3/4am CT