Pros
I think it's fair to offer a balanced review of Earnest Partners. It's not all great nor is it all terrible. If you are a recent graduate or new entrant into finance, Earnest provides a fertile learning ground. In my experience, if you can stick it out, you come away very experienced because the company is small and the organization is flat. It's not a place to advance your career, but a reasonable place to begin. There is no hand holding and at times you may feel that you are drinking from a fire hose, but at the end of the day you will come away with invaluable experience. You can find both best practices and practices you wish never to repeat. That said, the depth of experience is the value of joining EP.
Cons
There is very high turnover at EP which in itself creates a culture of fear. There is a persistent influx and outflux of people. Therefore, EP is a perpetual training ground. Employees, even the partners, fear the CEO. This creates a culture of secrecy and talk behind his back. There is not a lot of laughter, love, or friendliness. Everyone appears to be watching their own back and perhaps sabotaging others. The moral is low and rife with insecurity. There is also a cost-cutting that is lacking in generosity which doesn't resonate well. There is also a lack of compassion and acknowledgement of life outside of EP. Everyone there works very hard but few are acknowledged. It will be difficult for anyone joining EP to find a reasonable work-life balance. Pay is below industry at entry but benefits are good. No employee apears to be particularly well off. In fact, many employees voice financial stresses in their lives. Management does not appear to care about anyone. I not sure this is true, but perhaps the high turnover prevents people from forming solid or lasting relationships. The CEO is hard to get to know and befriend, which is a shame given his wealth of industry knowledge and understated charisma. I didn't meet anyone who called Paul Viera a mentor or a friend. Rather a long line of detachments. Very sad indeed.