Vault’s Verdict

Evercore is a prestigious independent investment banking advisory firm that’s ideally looking for well-rounded, professional, intellectual, team-oriented, hardworking, personal candidates. For students, the firm runs a very rewarding internship program. Interns have access to high-quality live deals, excellent training, and senior bankers who are willing to help. Hours can be long for interns, but the experience is top-notch. For its full-time junior bankers, Evercore offers numerous career development opportunities, including best-in-class informal and formal training, valuable mentoring, an apprenticeship culture where seniors take an active interest in developing juniors, significant responsibility on live transactions, and the ability to move to other groups and areas within the firm.

Due to the firm’s strong deal flow, it can be difficult for junior bankers to achieve work/life balance. However, senior bankers greatly respect junior bankers’ time, and try to be as accommodating and flexible as possible to ensure juniors aren’t overworked. Compensation gets rave reviews, as Evercore pays near the top of the Street average when it comes to both salaries and bonuses. Meanwhile, benefits and perks are said to be merely in line with the Street average, with several insiders saying the 401(k) match needs to be improved.

Recently, Evercore has been increasing its focus on DE&I, making diversity a clear priority when recruiting. The firm has hired many military veterans and women, but it could do better when it comes to hiring underrepresented minorities. With respect to Evercore’s business outlook, it weathered 2022 and 2023 well and is well positioned to have a strong 2024. For several years, Evercore has been one of the fastest growing investment banks—and is showing no signs of slowing down.

EMPLOYEE REVIEWS

Hiring Process

“The firm’s interview process is thorough and efficient. Interviewers try to call back candidates as soon as the interview rounds are completed to remain competitive during a candidate’s process. The ideal candidate is someone interested in growing and learning within the role and is a team-oriented person, as much of the work/culture is collaborative.”

“The firm provides many opportunities for candidates to get to know teams through networking events, informational interviews, etc., before extending first-round interviews. The firm is seeking candidates who match the culture of the firm and are intellectual, excellent, and hardworking individuals, and are not egotistical or arrogant.”

“The firm aims to focus on quality of candidates not eagerness of networking, only requiring two coffee chats before interviews and not judging candidates by whether they say, ‘This is my first-choice firm.’ The ideal candidate is a very hard worker who is nice and also a normal person, with hobbies and passion outside of work.”

On-campus recruiting events, then one to two coffee chats, then interviews, then a Superday. The firm is seeking people who are culture carriers, who are professional, cordial, and pleasant to be around, and who show potential to somehow someway become a partner one day (should they choose to go down that path).”

Interview Questions

“Please describe a task, project, or effort where you had to make a particularly difficult decision. What was your role and what made it difficult? What did you learn? Thinking about a prior job, can you describe a time when you worked on a team you would define as particularly diverse? How did you approach the teamwork aspect?”

“What is the market risk premium? How is it measured? Please describe the changes you can make to a DCF that will have the biggest impact. If you have an analyst who is checked out because they are about to leave for their PE job and you need their help on a project, what would you do?”

“Please walk me though an impact on financials when depreciation goes up by 20. In what scenario would an increasing WACC increase the value of a company?”

“Toughest interview on the Street. Valuation, accounting, M&A, LBO, and various logic/math questions.”

Intern Experience

“Really great experience working on two live deals and a pitch to a major public semiconductor company. Additionally, the people at the firm are some of the nicest and smartest people I’ve worked with. The hours can be long and the expectations are high. As a new employee, this can be stressful at times.”

“The best training on the Street. In 10 weeks, you become a wizard of finance, Excel, PowerPoint, and the like. Additionally, exposure to large-cap transactions provides a unique context to implement newly learned skills. Lastly, the culture is amazing—flat across the firm, no big egos, and a ‘high tides raise all ships’ mentality.”

“I really enjoyed the culture of camaraderie that made it easy to integrate into the work environment and communicate with my peers. It was clear that a lot of thought had gone into the recruiting process when meeting the other analysts in my program. Furthermore, from a technical standpoint, it was incredibly analytical compared to my previous experiences, and even as an intern I felt like I was making an impact. The hours weren’t always great, but that’s a given with the position.”

“I learned a ton and was exposed to a lot of teams. Everyone was very friendly, and I got to do the real associate role—you have the opportunity to work on live deals. It wasn't like at some firms where they give the interns fake work or little to do.”

Career Development

“We have an apprenticeship model where senior bankers are very focused on teaching junior bankers in order to have the strongest human capital possible. This apprenticeship approach combined with the extraordinary deal flow at EVR gives junior bankers unparalleled career development opportunities.”

“The firm is focused on attracting and retaining the best, and is very willing to move people around as their professional interests evolve. It’s not ‘institutionalized’ like other banks; instead, thanks to the firm’s size, any well-liked banker has those options. Another great aspect of the firm’s career development is how much freedom and latitude you get to run with client engagements/deals, which gives you tremendous opportunity to dictate the work and build client relationships. It’s about getting the job done in the best way possible and without the hierarchy, which creates an environment for learning and growth.”

“If you want to work with a specific industry group, or even change product groups, the firm is very accommodative. EverLearn is our online learning portal, providing dozens of courses across even the most esoteric of topics, so people can get smart quickly. Evercore is your oyster when it comes to career development.”

“I think informal and formal mentoring/training is outstanding. Evercore also has a mentorship program, and the culture is very supportive. We are given a lot of client exposure and deal management experience at the junior and mid-levels, but not without the appropriate support both from those junior to us and from our senior team members. Our senior team is extremely approachable and involved, which is extremely beneficial from a learning perspective.”

Quality of Life

“Senior management and senior bankers really care about the people here and try to be as accommodating and flexible as possible to ensure that people do get time off. But because of the tremendous amount of deal flow we have, it can be difficult at times for junior and mid-level bankers to have much control over their lives.”

“The firm’s employees don’t engage in as much busy work as you find at other banks. There’s still a lot of work to get done, but that’s the tradeoff in investment banking. Still, if you accept that tradeoff, Evercore is the best bank to be at in terms of respecting your free time without unnecessarily jamming you. Everyone is very reasonable in their requests and understands there’s lots of work going on. If you have to work hard here, it’s 100 percent because of client work, and not because of busy work or bad leadership.”

“No face time, very little weekend work (if any), and people are respectful of your time off. But when you’re not on vacation, you have to be available anytime.”

“Flat culture, Friday work from home, and Saturdays are protected. Everyone is respectful and genuine in all facets. Sure, there are bad apples everywhere, but Evercore seems to have the fewest. Additionally, there’s a spirit of integrity that is pervasive—it's better to do things right than to do them easy. If you’re struggling or need help, you can ask anyone, anytime, without judgement. I couldn’t imagine working anywhere else.”

Salary and Benefits

“We’re paid very well and have access to great peaks for paternity leave, egg freezing, child care, pet care, etc.”

“Salaries are very competitive, and bonuses are generally very high relative to other firms.”

“The firm’s compensation package is great in terms of base pay and bonus (although I wish the stock component were a little lower; regardless, I’m still very happy with what I’m paid). I think there’s room for the firm to increase its 401(k) match. I also wish they provided perks tailored to the California offices.”

“All-in compensation is the best on the Street. Being able to work remotely after dinner time is a game-changer. The restructuring team also does hybrid weeks a few times a year, which makes it easier to see family. The healthcare, 401(k) plan, and free food options are decent but not amazing (the 401(k) match isn’t wildly high). Healthcare is only partially subsidized. There is some free food, but we don’t get free lunches like some firms or a $40 Seamless credit like others. There is no gym in the building, which is a bummer. The dress code is relatively casual (I rarely wear suits or ties), which is nice. The company discounts are solid.”

Wellness Efforts

“Evercore incentivizes both physical and mental health. Our benefits include coverage for both, and Evercore will contribute to your HSA if you stay on top of your doctor visits. Also, I know some employees who have communicated to their teams their desire to exercise regularly, and the teams accommodate that time.”

“The firm has been committed to wellness efforts and began the EverWELL program to focus on these areas for the past few years. There are programs available to all employees that provide support with counseling, discounts for meditation programs, annual programming to review nutrition and on-site wellness (with a financial incentive for completing an annual physical), daily testing available for Covid-19, strep, and the flu. Additionally, they have brought dermatologists on site for skin testing, and have offered flu shots and Covid-19 boosters to all employees. The firm is very committed to preventative health as well as maintenance and support for employees in different phases of their health journeys.”

“EverWELL is amazing. The firm provides services for counseling, exercise, meditation, nutrition, and the like.”

“There are a lot of resources on wellness, but there’s not always time to take advantage of them.”

Diversity and ESG Initiatives

“The firm has made strong efforts to improve our focus on DE&I. Each business unit has created annual initiatives around these efforts, and has presented and reviewed progress throughout the year with senior leadership at the firm. The firm created a Global Diversity Council and four Diversity Networks focused on Women, Traditionally Underrepresented Minorities, LGBTQ+ employees, and Veterans. The firm recently hired Lucida Plummer, our Chief Diversity Officer. Additionally, there has been cross-collaboration throughout the firm between volunteers from different business units to organize events specific to each Diversity Network as well as annual history/heritage months. The DE&I Champion Award was also started a couple years ago to recognize the efforts of individuals within the firm who have continued to espouse the firm’s DE&I values. That said, there still needs to be stronger efforts to retain employees from each diversity network population at the more senior levels of the firm. The firm can also do more to recruit and retain individuals with disabilities.”

“As a veteran, I feel that Evercore takes great effort and care to promote D&I efforts. D&I recruiting is a clear priority, and D&I events are held often with good attendance.”

“The firm hires a large number of military veterans and women but could increase the number of underrepresented minorities we hire.”

“Evercore consistently hires very diverse incoming classes, and people are very mindful of each other’s differences. I have never had an awkward moment where a coworker has said something inappropriate.”

Business Outlook

“We’ve been one of the fastest growing firms in our industry for a while, and I don’t see us really slowing down. I think the firm and leadership knows its strengths, and has done a good job of focusing on those strengths and continuing to build on them.”

“We have weathered 2022 and 2023 well and expect a strong 2024. We are actively working to address areas we need to strengthen and weed out weak performers.”

“The firm is in great position. Let’s see if they can come out of the broader markets slump with a strong position in the league tables. The leadership has done a good job bringing in new partners to support growth, but only time will tell if they’re the right partners.”

“Evercore is well positioned in the short term and even more so in the long term. Employee morale is at an all-time high. People are elated to be part of something bigger than any one individual. The firm competes at the highest level and has rapidly grown over the past decade. Upward mobility at the firm is very clear, with a high percentage of homegrown employees rising the ranks to senior managing director, the highest rung at the firm. Additionally, other bankers across the Street have taken notice and are flocking to Evercore at increasingly high rates each year. The deal pipeline is robust because of this. There is no stopping the one-way freight train that is Evercore.”