Too much bureaucracy - Application Developer State Street Employee Review

2.0
20 Dec 2008
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

State Street considers itself a technology provider to the financial services industry. As an IT worker this benefitted me. I got to work on some interesting projects. I picked up some new technical skills along the way. The pay was good, as were the bonuses.

Cons

In a word, bureaucracy. No work gets done without filling out the right form and having it approved by one, but more often more, levels of management. The long time employees there tended to have bad attitudes - complaining all the time. This combined with the bureaucracy tended to be a morale killer. Management had a very cavalier attitude toward night and weekend work. It was almost as if they didn't expect us to have lives outside work.

Explore other reviews about State Street

5.0
5 June 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

on-boarding was easy, lot of learning opportunities/clients to service, nice co-workers

Cons

sparse work-load allotted, difficult client assignments, strict vps

1.0
14 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Remote work is (rarely) an option, though the approval process is extremely slow and bureaucratic. There are a few well-meaning colleagues who genuinely try to drive positive change before burning out.

Cons

Onboarding and HR processes are severely broken, taking 11 months to approve remote status and failing to prepare basic equipment for day one. The workplace culture is deeply hostile, with anger and yelling functioning as the default communication style across teams. Leadership turnover is rampant, resulting in constant re-organizations, splintered teams, and a total lack of strategic direction. Role clarity is non-existent, forcing employees to invent their own daily tasks while receiving entirely contradictory instructions. Direct management is completely absent; I went seven months without any contact from my boss before being laid off via a three-word instant message and short call.

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