Northern Trust Reviews in Chicago, IL Area

Pros

Small as compared to other financial institutions .... so flexibility with a few things still there ...

Cons

relatively less salary as compared to other fiancial institutions.
Technology expense is less ... better place to work on business side then technology.

Advice to Senior Management

There are bright people in organization ... they just need to get the right chance ... there are some people in organization for a long time on other hand who are at key positions but need to be re-evaluated...some changes has started happening recently when new people have stated coming in and it is working ... continue with this...

Pros

Room for error- they don't fire easily, good people, encouraging learning

Cons

Salary is at the bottom, no bonus and team leaders mid level managers don't leave so no room for advancement.

Advice to Senior Management

Move manages or create more opportunites for analysts to have a carrer path

Pros

Ok for a first job out of college
Decent benefits
Fast paced environment
You get paid for overtime

Cons

Same duties everyday
Limited growth opportunities (Norther Trust prefers outside candidates over internal)
Low starting salary (now around forty)
Average raises around 3%, but last two years around 1%
Systems break down daily (especially before and after major holidays)
Communication between departments is very bad and a lot of it last minute
No company sponsored events unless you pay and organize it yourself
Work first, personal life later
If you like to take vacation around major holidays (Christmas, New Year) it is not for you
Any perks you can think of (coffee, snacks, tickets to events etc.) there are none
Your advice or suggestions are as good as an echo in the woods
Fairly high turnover rate (around 80% over two years)

Advice to Senior Management

Listen to your employees, fix the systems so work can be completed on time, engage everyone in the process and teach all departments about other areas of the company (we can work better if we understand the whole picture!). Remove lazy bureaucracy as it is very hard to get something done and even harder to get a response out of other departments without clear deadlines. Give people more responsibility as in the current system nobody is really responsible for anything except the person at the end of the process. Employees are your assets, treat them well and they will perform, but keep in mind salary and benefits compared to your competition (we are way below). Also, when was the last time you sent out any kind of anonymous employee survey?

Pros

Great starting benefits for someone just out of college
Stabile company that takes minimal risks
My department doesn't fear layoffs very often

Cons

Low salaries
Minimal raises and bonuses
Terrible technology - computers are very outdated and more server space needed
Too many levels of management

Advice to Senior Management

The starting pay and/ or raises and bonuses could be more competitive. The technology needs to be upgraded to meet certain standards and to provide our clients with faster and more efficient service.

Pros

Good company to have on your resume
Good learning experience
Paid overtime

Cons

Not many opportunities for advancement, unless you move to a different department

Advice to Senior Management

Make starting salary more competitive, because when the economy picks up you will never be able retain a good talent.

Pros

-Vacation time is very generous for bank officers
-Some departments have great management

Cons

-Some departments are very back stabbing in client servicing
-Too much work on everyone's desk
-Inadequate compensation compared to other companies
- Low morale

Advice to Senior Management

Use some of your funds to reward and compensate the people that are facing your clients every day.

Pros

Conservative culture which teaches you the fundamentals of the industry. Although you will not be working with the newest and riskiest financial products, you will build an extremely strong finance based foundation. Great work/life balance.

Cons

It is NOT a meritocracy culture. Networking and "who you know" goes much further than being rewarded for hard work. Additionally, it is tough to move up through the ranks, no matter performance, because of other employees with tenure. Salary is also lower because of the work life balance.

Advice to Senior Management

Although a conservative culture is very respected, I believe it is important to adapt to ones environment. Yes Northern was not involved in the credit default swap issues and other financial products that brought about the financial crisis, you are still feeling the hit. Northern needs to increase its risk tolerance.

Pros

Great employee development programs.
Tenure and experience is appreciated.
Senior Management support and open to mentoring.
#1 in work/life balance.

Cons

Some employees are complacent (taking advantage of work/life balance).
Takes too long to implement solutions.

Advice to Senior Management

Trim the fat...look at individual productivity and hold employees accountable.

Pros

work/life flexibility and tuition reimbursement

Cons

performance reviews are very subjective
little opportunity for advancement
advancement based on who you know and not skills or education

Advice to Senior Management

complete overhaul of the performance management system
hold senior managers accountable for their expectations and leadership abilities

Pros

Northern Trust focuses on their clients by supporting their people and keeping the highest ethical standards. They also recognize the strategic benefit of having a diverse client and employee base.

Cons

Northern Trust has a culture of collegiality and this makes it difficult to get quick decisions and to expand quickly into new markets.