Barclays Global Investors Reviews

Pros

The people I work with are intelligent, hardworking and care about the work they do. The industry is interesting, always changing and therefore challenging. Location is great!

Cons

There has been a lot of turmoil lately. Many people are more interested in building personal empires than doing what is best overall for the health of the company.

Advice to Senior Management

One BGI was much more a concept than a reality on the IT side. IT was all about building empires, not building one BGI.

Pros

Nice people, challenging environment with lots going on. IShares team has an industry-leading position, which is nice. They have lots to do to streamline the technology infrastructure to get the lowest-cost/highest-value for the business. Figuring out how to do that, within the overall BGI legacy of infrastructure will be a challenge, but worth tackling.

Cons

Acquisition by Blackrock is likely to put significant pressure on BGI people, and many of the tech jobs may be absorbed, given the Blackrock investment technology organization.

Advice to Senior Management

Good job communicating during the iShare/BGI "go shop" period.

Pros

Above average compensation and benefits.

Cons

Hires and promote incompetent people.
Lack of process and structure.
Too many position that are not needed.

Advice to Senior Management

Allow employee to evaluate managers.

Pros

Has been a good place to work with diligent and helpful colleagues. Good autonomy. Succesful company which still has growth potential in many areas

Cons

Company has become much bigger and more bureacratic. Current uncertainty over acquisition. Lots of speculative preparation for meeting the new owners

Advice to Senior Management

Deliver stability in employment . Give clear guidance on the future shape of the merged company . Try to re-kindle the earlier can-do culture.

Pros

Top notch colleagues. Collegiate atmosphere. Amazing access to management. A phenomenal place to learn.

Cons

A disruptive approach to organizational management and perpetual cost cutting calls has permanently jeopardized this firm's ability to attract or retain talent.

Reorganizations, reporting line changes, layoffs, offshoring and a constant fixation on commoditizing IT are making this company less and less fun to work for.

Advice to Senior Management

Offshore more management and less of the heart and soul of what got the company to where it is....and brace yourself for significant flight when the economy begins to turn around, as the "dedicated" troops you're still blessed with in SF, London, Tokyo and Sydney will soon look for other opportunities, as this is not the "family" it once was.

Pros

Provides learning opportunites and allows career improvement. Senior management are very co-operative and flexible and appreciate hard work put by employees.

Cons

Very focussed on asset management and restricted to certain asset classes depending upon the business unit you work for. Transition between units is difficult.

Advice to Senior Management

Allow seamless transition between business units encouraging all-round growth for people new to the industry and also make bonus payments more transparent.

Pros

Great pay and benefits. Good culture. Good work life balance depending on the group you are in.

Cons

Salaries low and bonus high so no gaurantees. Recent layoff's and possibly more to come with the purchase of BGI by BlackRock.

Advice to Senior Management

Be more decisive. Stop reorganizing so often.

Pros

The business people here are much more decent compared to other financial shops. Good compensation and benefits.

Cons

Very slow (if ever) to get rid of "bad" employees. When good employees turn a project around, it's the bad employees who get the recognition thus perpetuating the cycle.

Advice to Senior Management

The company overall is doing well and management must be getting rich from the latest deal, so nothing said will help.

Pros

BGI is all about corporate culture, people really live it, it is a great place to be.

Cons

I still have to find one

Advice to Senior Management

More efforts to integrate IT and the business, I believe the members of IT will do a even better job if they can understand better the impact of their actions or inactions in the lives of their colleague on the business side.

Pros

Bright people who respect each other.
Overall compansation and benefit plans have been good.
People work hard but the company attempts to create work-life balance.

Cons

BGI are always constantly reorganizing which can create confusion and many tactical decisions. While people are very courteous it can sometimes result in passive/aggressive behaviour. Overall, not enough emphasis of career development planning, although there are attempts to change that.

Advice to Senior Management

More focus on strategic planning and direction.