Pros
Blackrock is a relatively small and young company so the internal growth opportunities are great and the motivated workforce is competitive. Analyst are given a lot of responsibility and are very much involved in day to day activities and at many times even work with senior management on projects. In addition to this, the company has done fairly well during the market downturn and so it is a good and stable place to be. Also, the pay packages are relatively good and stable compared to the market. Since it’s an asset management company, you won’t have huge bonuses one year and then next walk out with nothing. Rather you will get a stable amount which will increase marginally as you have more time under your belt.
Cons
First and foremost, there is very little work/life balance. Working in Blackrock Solutions, as an analyst you have to pay your dues and so you will be putting in 60 - 75 hours a week depending on which group you are a part of. Even after your year or year and a half of working crazy hours, the norm is a 12 hour workday regardless of where you stand or what group you are a part of. Working for eight hours is seen as a half-day. Work for an analyst is all day and many times you will find yourself working into the night and on weekends expected to be in a 6:30am the following morning. Within Blackrock Solutions, most groups are very technical and so you find yourself learning more about the applications than the finance you thought you would be learning. Due to this, many of the things you learn on the job are non-transferable within the industry and if you look to go somewhere else, the biggest thing you will be taking with you is the name of the firm.