Great if you are an advisor - Anonymous employee Hightower Advisors Employee Review

2.0
Apr 14, 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

HighTower is still a relatively new company so you do have flexibility to create a lot of your own items and processes. If you want to stay at HighTower for years then there seems to be decent upward mobility. Like any company, some of the people are wonderful, funny and dynamic. True go-getters.

Cons

The office culture and environment is geared toward pleasing and servicing advisors and their clients. That means that everyone else who is not an advisor or client suffers. Clients were consistently valued more than my personal health and well being and it was made clear to me that I was disposable. Some of the "managers" at the firm have zero experience managing people, make no effort to learn about how to manage people and are truly awful to the people that they manage. The team that I was on created a "watch your back" culture that was devoid of humanity. I was just a way for them to make money. More broadly, the culture at HighTower is one where advisors thrive and support staff are overworked and under appreciated. Many people on the corporate side do not take accountability for their actions. Corporate benefits are not great. 401k match, paid time off (especially for those beginning new families), etc. and the culture for women is not progressive at all.

Explore other reviews about Hightower Advisors

5.0
Feb 3, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The culture here is incredible

Cons

There are a lot of changes constantly

1.0
Jan 30, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

A handful of genuinely good people who try to do the right thing and support their teammates. The work can be interesting at times, and you can learn a lot if you’re proactive.

Cons

The culture here used to be one of the best parts of the job, but over the last two years it’s pretty much disappeared. Leadership keeps pushing more in-office time, and the reasoning given in all-hands meetings feels disconnected from reality. It comes off as out of touch, and things like “bagels in the office” are honestly more insulting than motivating. The team dynamic has also changed for the worse. It doesn’t feel like people are working together anymore. A lot of folks are just trying to protect themselves and avoid blame rather than collaborate, which creates a stressful and political environment. Larry in particular is seen by many as elitist and overly intense. The expectation seems to be that people should just grind until they burn out or leave. There’s very little concern for sustainability or long-term morale, and turnover feels accepted rather than addressed. On top of that, the private equity ownership creates constant anxiety. It feels like they’re more interested in being the first to sell than in being the best company. If an exit opportunity comes up, it’s hard to believe the company wouldn’t be gutted. Layoffs feel likely at some point, especially given how often management relationships with firms like Goldman Sachs are brought up.

3
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