Piper Jaffray Reviews

Former Employee – worked at Piper Jaffray

Pros – Stepping stone to other jobs within field.

Cons – Lack of communication is prevalent at all levels of this firm---from VP to MD to CEO---so the culture is still very much one of a boys' club.

Advice to Senior Management – Communicate with your employees in an authentic manner and have a strategy other than following what larger, bulge brackets do to make money in new products/markets.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Piper Jaffray

Pros – - Great name, regardless of recent banking down turn in market share and dealflow
- Good pay, although not on an hourly basis
- Bonus pay in line with market

Cons – - Poor management and work-life balance
- Difficult times for all in current market turmoil however Piper did not prevail with a clear strategy to win new business

Advice to Senior Management – hiring senior MD's to build management is a good strategy and will build pipeline for future. Company needs to find closers who can rebuild the tarnished PJC name however

Former Employee – worked at Piper Jaffray

Pros – Good money if you can become an market maker or coverage trader
Probably the largest brokerage in the mpls st paul area

Cons – Huge turnover
management incompetence
investment banking runs this place
lots of nepotism
not much employee morale
lay offs all of the time

Advice to Senior Management – They need to have more stability in employment there, layoffs happen all of the time, one time they literally had everybody at their desk and if you were called you were laid off. pretty much like a firing squad.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Piper Jaffray

Pros – Decent benefits, admins get to leave early once a month on a Friday

Cons – Vacation/PTO bank not that generous, medical/dental plan contributions rather expensive

Advice to Senior Management – n/a

Current Employee – been working at Piper Jaffray

Pros – Experience. Piper gives analysts lots of responsibility (ie additional work) which gives you a lot to speak to when it comes to interviewing elsewhere. This makes it sound not good, but really, analyst programs are built around analysts moving on to VC/PE so it does prepare you well for those opportunities.

Cons – Limited respect for your time, impossible to have a personal life, not necessarily as well regarded as bulge banks, but competes well in the middle-market.

Advice to Senior Management – Senior management doesn't do much to supervise the IB division. There's a disconnect from Senior mgt - senior bankers - junior resources. You should get more involved with the senior bankers to ensure that they're fostering the partnership environment you talk about. That message never flows down to junior resources in action, and I can assure you the junior resources have no interest in moving up the ladder in a firm like that. You'll constantly be looking outside for senior bankers which is why it's hard for you to actually develop "partners" that you want.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Piper Jaffray

Pros – The compensation and benefits are good. If you are in the midwest it is one of the few banks that is in MN so the location is good if that is where you want to be. IF you want a resume builder for the IB experience it is a decent place to be.

Cons – As with all investment banks right now layoffs are a huge concern Piper does not concern itself with its analysts or associates and barely concerns itself with vps and principals. I have seen layoffs at all levels. They don't give much effort to keeping even the good people. Senior management is not really concerned about mentoring and giving you tools to advance.

Advice to Senior Management – Build a team. Don't just use people for grunt work and then lay them off.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Piper Jaffray

Pros – The benefits, facilities, office equipment and people are great. The company even has facilities
for bicycle commuting with a card-key accessible locker/shower room. There is a nursing mothers
room as well as a room to take a nap if you're feeling under the weather and you can then go back
to work if you feel up to it. There are some sides that show the company cares for and supports its
employees. The building is recently constructed, modern, well lit and in a easily accessible location.
The work can be stimulating, interesting and there were many opportunities to learn at Piper.

Cons – There are certain cliques that if you manage to find yourself on the outside of your career will either
progress slowly or stall altogether. First impressions count for a lot. There is a certain amount of stress involved in this industry as a whole that I honestly admit I saw filter down to employees - on several occasions I saw employees exiting the building on a stretcher and some of these people
were young and in reasonable shape. Also, as layoffs occurred multiple responsibilities filtered
down to those remaining. Company takes much notice of physical appearance - if you're trim, fit,
dress well and can conduct yourself professionally you will do well. Competitive atmosphere may
be too much for some.

Advice to Senior Management – People can only take so much stress before they snap no matter how healthy they are.
Recognition is a good thing and some employees who I saw were doing exemplary
jobs and didn't get the recognition they deserved. In the current economy it pays to
utilize resources you may not be aware of being right under your nose - pay attention
to your workers. Some of your best resources are under or unrecognized.

Current Employee – been working at Piper Jaffray

Pros – Great company. Will weather the storm better than other mid market banks. As an analyst, you generally work directly with the senior bankers on the team. In general the teamwork is better than exists with my friends at bulge bracket banks. Some very strong sector bankers. This is much more stable environment than i'm hearing from my friends at other banks in town.

Cons – Not on the high end of comp compared with bulge firms. Sometimes difficult to know where you stand, but my banker has been helpful.

Advice to Senior Management – Seem to make decisions on staffing which is short sighted. Everyone sees the need to bring in more senior talent.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Piper Jaffray

Pros – Great fellow employees and family oriented company structure. In a high pressure industry, Piper Jaffray is a bit less stressful than other banks.

Cons – Minneapolis centric. You are 'out of the loop' if you are not in Minnie. Pay scale seemed less than industry particularly in NYC and San Francisco.

Advice to Senior Management – Meet with employees outside of Minnie. Clearly communicate expectations.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Piper Jaffray

Pros – Opportunity to work closely alongside senior managers and smaller, growth-oriented clientele.

Cons – It appears that the most accomplished and competent individuals sit in Minni.

Advice to Senior Management – Develop a consistent internal message and execute on it.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend