Duff & Phelps Reviews

I have been working at Duff & Phelps full-time for more than a year

Pros – Duff & Phelps combines the resources of a bulge-bracket institution with the entrepreneurial spirit of a boutique firm. D&P encourages staff to invest in building a personal network and to be active outside of the office.

Cons – Duff & Phelps has grown considerably over the last few years and is still in the process of digesting and molding all of its divisions to best serve clients - this has caused minor disruptions in day-to-day operations, but nothing major.

Advice to Senior Management – Purchase better coffee

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

I have been working at Duff & Phelps full-time for more than a year

Pros – Exposure to Complex Deals
Deal Responsibility
Exposure to Larger Cases

Cons – Small Deals in M&A
Not Enough Individual Training
Loss of Talent

Advice to Senior Management – Have to pay to keep talent

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at Duff & Phelps full-time for more than a year

Pros – - Great Culture. The culture in the Los Angeles office is amazing. As an experienced investment banker I found that the managers and head of the office actually care about your life and do not treat you a like a disposable resource that they can utilize until you fizzle out.
- Consistent Deal Flow. The directors and managing directors are seasoned veterans that bring in substantial deal flow and can execute transactions efficiently and consistently.
- Solid Training and Ample Resources. Duff & Phelps has the resources of a bulge bracket investment bank and dedicates a lot of time and money to training employees.

Cons – - Limited Junior Staffing. While the company tends to invest a lot of money in each employee, it also limits the number of analysts that it can hire. The analysts get a lot of experience that they normally would not get until they were in their second or third year at other firms, but the investment banking junior staff is consistently very busy.
- No free Red Bull or Nespresso (yes, a very Wall Street problem...)

Advice to Senior Management – None. The corporate strategy has been excellent and I hope the growth continues under Carlyle.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

I have been working at Duff & Phelps full-time for more than a year

Pros – Well-run
To be privately held by Carlyle Group

Cons – Valuation business is an old dinosaur that needs to be cut down

Advice to Senior Management – Create better opportunities to market for new business across service lines

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

I worked at Duff & Phelps full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Solid training and financial modeling and intangibles valuation. Many people go into industry, the big four, or banking after working here.

Cons – Managing directors know what they're doing - they've been in the business for decades. It's the managers that often mistreat the staff.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

I worked at Duff & Phelps full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Great Firm and great projects; location is fantastic; well-managed

Cons – Erratic hours; tough clients who are also working crazy hours; hard to find a work-life balance

I have been working at Duff & Phelps full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Good ambiance among the juniors

Cons – Very poor management, lack of staffing, lack of communication

Advice to Senior Management – Implement a 360° rating system, better communication about the objectives throughout the year, better rating system to reflect the real performance of the employee and reward them accordingly

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

I worked at Duff & Phelps as an intern for less than a year

Pros – Great culture and work atmosphere.

Cons – Some of the employees seemed to dislike their job.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

I have been working at Duff & Phelps full-time for less than a year

Pros – Colleagues and senior management are great and easy to work with. The work is interesting and somewhat challenging.

Cons – Middle management is incompetent, lazy, and extremely frustrating to work with. It creates an unpleasant work environment. Most colleagues are resentful of middle management.

Advice to Senior Management – There is no way for analysts and associates to provide feedback about middle management to upper management.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

I worked at Duff & Phelps full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Intelligent colleagues who cared about more than just getting ahead. We worked together to get the job done and hopefully enjoy the experience. Support from office management was generally strong.

Cons – Management relied almost solely on billable hours to determine bonuses and raises, which overlooks quality and deters innovation. The executive team appeared not to care much for their staff, we were treated like cogs.

Advice to Senior Management – Improve the annual review process to include more metrics. Billable hours do not solely determine productivity, and provide more Practice Development support for new VPs.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company