A lot of talk, not much action - Anonymous employee Northern Trust Employee Review

2.0
Jan 15, 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Work/life balance options are generally very good. There are flex schedule and work from home options available to most employees. Benefits are generally good, although they have been scaled back recently. Very few companies offer a pension anymore, but Northern does.

Cons

NT's management has only one focus - satisfying Wall Street. The only pervasive goal within the company is hitting ROI targets. There are plenty of platitudes and corporate sloganeering, but ultimately the company has no interest in excellence in anything. Keeping costs low is the primary driver throughout the company. This leads to behind-the-curve technology and poorly executed or unfinished projects. Employee engagement does not extend past a yearly survey and employee development is non-existent. The general solution to poor project performance is to add more layers of management rather than address resourcing problems or adjust approach to be more practical. Most of the values and slogans ring hollow.

Explore other reviews about Northern Trust

5.0
Jul 8, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great benefits and work environment

Cons

Nothing that’s too much of a con

2.0
Apr 21, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Nice people and a good environment. Benefits are good and the work is interesting. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate NT as a 7. But, it’s typical big corporate crap that hands out 2% raises and minimum bonuses during a good year yet spends $360 million this past quarter buying their stock back.

Cons

Constant reminders to do more with less and cut costs and belt tightening while the execs line their pockets and you maybe get a 2% raise. I could see such actions if the firm was doing bad financially, but they aren’t. Record this and record that for many quarters now. And they walk around patting each other on the back like they all did such a great job when in reality, the markets are up so the value of the assets we manage are up. I’m wondering what sort of actions will happen when the market goes south for several quarters. Oh. And the constant state of surveillance here is BS. Tracking to make sure you are here 3 days a week. Keyboard / mouse / PC tracking systems receding your activity. It’s like a 21st century high tech sweatshop in some ways.

2
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