Compass Lexecon Reviews

The promotion process to the 'professional' staff can seem completely inexplicable, with little to no practical advice given on how to reach that level. The skill levels of those promoted vary greatly, leaving the impression that nepotism plays a key role. You may find yourself in disbelief when considering the likely pay of some of your more senior colleagues. You are paid overtime, which can be amazing. You can also learn data analysis and programming, but usually SAS or STATA, which is likely not as desirable as say R or Python. There are no formal training programs of any kind. They do not comp education. The skills of its alumni thus vary greatly. The work is not innovative. Few people will take an interest in your career progress. You have to know who to work for to fully develop.

There is no company culture. It's neither an enjoyable nor an efficient place to work. It's actually kind of sad; many analysts up to VPs feel used by case managers. And the truth is they are used and everyone is aware of it. I've heard multiple sources (experts within 2 leading economic consulting firms) brag about how great their business model is i.e. take advantage of smart and hard-working 20 somethings and justify it by the fact that all 20 somethings are getting taken advantage of in the "marketplace". You'll hear a lot of arguments about the "market" while being here; it's a great defense for major corporations. But maybe don't think about your employees who log upwards of 2000 billable hours as everyday market participants. Think about them as people, hardworking, loyal and bright, not part of a game which you can handwave away as the "market". The more you treat people as part of a game, the more they will play it. And the more you reward people for "playing the game" instead of actually creating stellar work product, the more filled up with disloyal market participants who really want to do as little as possible and "play the game" your workplace will become. All this being said, there are some great people who work here. Hopefully, they see something more than small incremental gains for the actual value they provide at some point down the road.