FactSet Reviews in United Kingdom

Pros

Financial rewards are very good indeed when compared with other software companies in London and the rest of the UK, particularly the starting salary. Other benefits are also great, there is a good pension scheme and free lunch, snacks, fruit and drinks are provided every day.

There are lots of opportunities for growth in both technical knowledge and career (such as management roles) for those who perform well (I was able to achieve a senior role and management position within a few years thanks to high performance). Employees are encouraged to take on projects outside of their immediate responsibilities in order to help them grow, which also brings some interesting variation to the job.

The environment is definitely engineering focussed and very relaxed, senior managers chat and have lunch with new recruits. There are regular social events that are fully paid for by the company, things like go-karting, bowling, etc, which are great fun and many people regularly socialise together after work too. This kind of environment has been very hard to find in software enginering jobs in London in my past experience.

Cons

Pay is not as good as the banks (although it is close), this is a software company, if you want to work all hours of the day and be rewarded with a huge pay cheque then go to a bank. FactSet makes up for this by being focussed on engineering and encouraging a good work / life balance.

The company can be a little slow in identifying poor performers and acting on this, which can seem unfair if you are doing very well.

Advice to Senior Management

Really, the main thing FactSet needs to do is to get its name out to potential employees. Most people I speak to have never heard of FactSet and this puts them off joining when they have an opportunity at a better known company. Overall, I think they would probably be better off at FactSet and the company needs to do more to stop this being a factor.

Pros

FactSet has provided me with opportunities to meet new people, learn new technologies and provided space to develop ideas into fully fledged products. The team ethic at FactSet is second to none and selfless way in which team members help others achieve goals for the benefit of all leads to great rewards. Senior execs are happy to speak with new recruits in the hallways and no question is off limit. It really helps cement the feeling that my opinions are taking and considered seriously and courteously.

Cons

If you don't like travel, then sometimes the intercontinental trips can become tiresome, but that is something that is easily overcome. If you don't like open offices that foster communication between teams and team members, then you can always put on some headphones and listen to some tunes.

Advice to Senior Management

Not much, only to continue the great levels of transparency so that the teams that deliver the vision can continue to feel like stakeholders in the process.

Pros

FactSet is an incredibly fun and rewarding place to work. There is a lot of opportunity in terms of career development, and employees are given a huge amount of responsibility from the very beginning. The benefits are next to none, the pension plan is great, the free lunch is a nice perk, and you get free dinner on those nights where you are stuck working late.

The actual work is quite fun as well, you get to be social and go visit clients frequently. Depending on which team you are you can travel frequently.

I have never once gone to bed on a Sunday night feeling sad or annoyed about having to in to work the next day. That is the first time I can say that about any job..

Cons

There is a little to much mixing of people's personal lives and professional lives at FactSet. This can be a good and bad thing.

Advice to Senior Management

For people in the consulting role, it often feels like you have very few career options if you are not planning to go into sales. You should clarify what other career paths are available.

Pros

Free lunch, great life / work balance, talented engineers, tech freedom, great benefits, good office location, good amount of leave

Cons

Base salaries start great but don't continue trend in depth of time - generally speaking Factset could be rewarding its key assets, its engineers, more accordingly with market standards.

Advice to Senior Management

Well managed company - keep it up!

Pros

Its a relaxed place to work, considering they are in financial services, and people are very relaxed. The environment is positive and everyone is very nice. You get a free lunch, and a number of benefits, such as a laptop etc. The work is interesting.

Cons

There is alot of internal politics. People who've been with the firm for long are favored, and not always the best performers. The levels of knowledge in finance, which is supposed to be the core business of the company, is very low, and the majority of people are the 9-5 types who can't go for a beer because they need to feed the cat. Very few ambitious people, but one gets the feeling that thats what is preferred, and is reflected in the salaries, which stagnate once you join.

Advice to Senior Management

If you want the London office to be more revenue generating, change the HR team, or hire recruitment firms. There are too many deadbeat people with limited ambitions.

Pros

A good start at the begining of your career as FactSet is a good name to carry in the investment arena. Good access and learning how to use FactSet products. Free lunch.

Cons

- Innefective middle management
- Salary is poor, very small increases every year
- Lack of progression opportunities after 4-5 years

Advice to Senior Management

- Reward the jewels of the team
- Offer different career paths with potential
- Make the departments look and feel more professional (most of the engineers turn up in trainers at 10AM - not good)

Pros

Free Lunch.
Client facing role.
CFA support.
Collegial environment.
Good exposure to HF, IB and IM workflow.

Cons

Incompetent managers.
Meaningless targets.
Very low pay vs. work hours.
Zero upward career progression after initial role promotion.
Clique.
Bad feedback system.

Advice to Senior Management

Poor show for a company that is +30 years old yet still falls in the medium-small group.

Pros

free lunch, possibility to work from home, recognisable brand

Cons

no promotions based on your performance, no team building, no interaction between differnet teama/department

Advice to Senior Management

give people opportunity to grow within comapny in order to retain good people.

Pros

Good, intelligent people with aspirations that are all working towards the same goal
Down to earth company with a small company feel
Flexibility and good overall compensation packages
Friendly place to work with good atmosphere

Cons

Not enough visibility on earnings potential and not big enough to provide a huge choice of careers to everyone, but will always look after the top performers

Advice to Senior Management

Communicate more clearly changes and aspirations behind making these changes
Ensure that the direction and company goals are clearly communicated down the chain and visible to all employees

Pros

1. Helpful and great people to work with.
2. Manage time and day schedule independently.
3. Project management autonomy and independence.

Cons

1. Very low pay which stays low for a very long time.
2. Horizontal career moves being called promotions.
3. Inconsistent target and performance measures.

Advice to Senior Management

1. Pay structure should be looked into and revised to compete with competitors.
2. Management should organise soft skills courses for themselves.