Overview
Introduction
Piper Sandler is a middle-market investment banking powerhouse. Its strong mergers and acquisitions unit works on high-profile deals and more mid-market transactions than almost every other investment bank in the U.S. What makes Piper Sandler unique is its people, who have deep industry knowledge and experience. The firm also places a unique focus on the physical and emotional well-being of its people.
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Vault Verdict
Note: The firm did not participate in our 2022 Banking Survey; all comments are from our surveys in previous years.
Minneapolis-based Piper Sandler is looking for self-starters who will fit with the firm, rather than someone who is extremely technically adept. And the firm will hire candidates who are a good match, regardless of which school they attended. For students, Piper Sandler offers a good internship program where interns will get to work alongside senior bankers and clients, gaining live deal experience.
As for the firm’s corporate culture, it is said to be one of the best parts about working at Piper Sandler. The Midwest culture is collegial, entrepreneurial, challenging, and ...
About the Company
Piper Sandler is the product of a July 2019 merger between the investment banking firms Piper Jaffray and Sandler O'Neil. Piper Sandler operates through five main units: investment banking, public finance, institutional equities, fixed income, and private equity strategies. Headquartered in Minneapolis, the firm serves middle-market corporations, private equity firms, government entities, and institutional investors. It operates more than 50 offices across the U.S., and offices in London and Hong Kong. Services include advisory, public finance, capital markets products, and institutional equity and fixed income sales and trading. Today it has more than 1,500 employees and is led by Chad Abraham, its chairman and CEO.
Piper Jaffray’s history can be traced back to 1895, when it established a commercial paper broker...
Employee Reviews
- “Midwest culture leads senior bankers to be more understanding of personal commitments. They try to be flexible where possible in terms of when you do your work on the weekends so long as it is completed by the team’s deadline (that is, there is less of the ASAP mentality). Though, similar to the rest of the industry, the hours are unpredictable. Senior bankers fail to share some timing expectations with junior bankers, which can lead to unexpectedly tight timelines and personal sacrifices. Senior bankers also tend to unnecessarily over-promise to clients, creating unnecessarily short time frames.”
- “Great work/life balance for investment banking! I work with nice people who I enjoy spending time with at work, and I still have time to have a social life outside of the office. Of course, in banking I am always on call. There is enough flexibility to work from home at night and on weekends. I travel a decent amount and have a high level of client interaction.”
- “Limited face time, good group of people, good work/lifestyle balance, and good pay. But you have to take the initiative to learn and develop for good exit opportunities.”
- “I don’t feel as if there is competition amongst analysts and associates. But senior bankers often don’t care about analysts’ work/life balance and are not always considerate of time constraints outside of work.”
Getting Hired Here
- “Our interview process for analysts and associates typically consists of two to three rounds, including a final Super Day interview. We look for self-starters that can take directions when necessary. We look for personable people that can be professional in their interactions with our clients.”
- “For equity research, we prefer candidates with two or three years experience in equity research at another firm. These people can typically hit the ground running and don’t require a lot of training.”
- “Ideal candidate is someone who fits with the firm culture. We are more focused on finding the right fit than someone who answers the technical questions correctly.”
- “Piper is not afraid to hire people with the right skills, regardless of school affiliation.”