Bear Stearns & Co. Reviews

Pros

People were good to work locally
Starting pay was usually commensurate with the industry

Cons

Compensation was always an issue - bonus' were very meek to IT staff even in good markets and raises were not granted - all pay treatment was done as bonus
No 401K match
No pension -profit sharing and that was not very good either
Frequently changing benefit providers
Bonus' were mostly distibuted based on who you knew rather than what you did
They often made rules but when a senior exec challenged a rule when trying to enforce it they would rarely if ever back local managers
Some staff at some sites were outsourced and others were not, also done based on popularity of the local site managment with NY

Advice to Senior Management

Develop skills for managing IT with the business side of the compnay so they will buy into projects and establish rules that can be universally implemented

Pros

Best of Breed. I've worked in the Wall Street world for 25 years and in general, Bear Stearns has the best of everyone.

Cons

long hours, got to pay your dues. sometimes difficult to get recognition.

Advice to Senior Management

Reward the little guy, he's the one who really gets the work done. Without him, the trade doesn't get completed.

Pros

Reasonably good compensation, looks good on resume

Cons

Disorganized, random career outcomes as each group is fiefdom

Advice to Senior Management

need to think about who is promoted to middle management roles

Pros

The people make great co-workers and has a small firm feel. The parties weren't cheezy corporate but fun, that you wanted to be apart of.

Cons

It reminded me of the t.v. show, Mad Men, when men had certain bigger roles and woman reported to the men. All men are brokers and all woman are sale assistants, period. The sales assistants don't have much room for career growth and at times, don't feel as appreciated as they should. There is also very little diversity regards to race.

Advice to Senior Management

Be more connected with lower assistants as they might have more influence than you think.

Pros

the compensation and bonus were the twilight

Cons

the work hours no work after life and no going forward

Advice to Senior Management

stop behaving as if u are the best on the street

Pros

Location, location, location - great part of New York (that is if you worked on Madison Ave)

Cons

Managers that did not deserve to be in the position they were in

Advice to Senior Management

Get a clue and listen to your reports.