Pros
I've spent been many years here now and I don't think any trading firm in the world has nailed culture and employee satisfaction like IMC Chicago has.
The best evidence I can provide to an outsider is that most of the specific cons you can dig into from the last few years are largely unknown to current employees. The firm is serious about self-improvement, transparency, and 360 feedback, almost to the point of obsession.
We went months at a time where the only "difficult" anonymous questions asked of the Chicago MD were regarding snack food availability, such as the hardboiled eggs. They eventually restricted further snack questions. Then they took away the ability to ask questions anonymously because people kept using colorful language to express that the men's restroom was too small. Then they really made us mad when they decided to expand to the entire floor below us and perform a major office remodeling which included expanding the restrooms and adding significant snack drawer volume.
In terms of perks, comp, benefits, and events, most people will go their entire lives without experiencing a work environment that provides as much as IMC does in just one of these areas. Partially as a result of this, IMCers are humble, generous, affable, and kind. The stressful nature of the job is mitigated by a constant feeling of upward momentum and the knowledge that someone always has your back.
It's been truly exciting to grow alongside the firm. I enjoy going to work every single day, whether I get to the hardboiled eggs in time or not.
Cons
- Comp ranges for certain roles likely have unfairly limited upside during blowout years compared to peers' at competitors
- Lack of promotional ladder and titles likely does in some way contribute to lower retention around the 2 and 5 year marks, where those in other high-prestige industries will reliably be receiving career-affirming promotions.
- While the firm sets a great precedent as one that is transparent about how the partners get paid and what the bonus pool is (and so on), you're still often left pondering "where does the money really go and why?"
- Increasingly standardized and competitive recruiting process seems to eliminate a lot of the prototypical characters who have made IMC IMC
- Pre-pandemic, there was an apparent widening gap between the "fun" group and the people who don't really attend events. The hiring surge can either bridge the gap or start to make things awkward.
- I don't understand the Team Liquid partnership at all
- Golden handcuffs and a bunch of other industry-standard stuff which isn't worth mentioning