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Cornerstone Research

Engaged employer

Mixed Experience - Analyst Cornerstone Research Employee Review

2.0
Sep 15, 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- The environment is generally nice, and it's easy to make friends in what is a collegiate environment. -Senior staff are very kind and supportive. Admin staff are easy to get along with and care about the well being and culture of the office. - Pay and perks were competitive compared to other consulting firms. - In the first few months on the job there is a big emphasis on learning excel and coding.

Cons

- The hours are variable and unpredictable, making a work-life balance very difficult. - For the time I was there, analyst-level work was very, very dry. During my tenure at least 90% of my teams' efforts were some type of data cleaning or collection. It didn't appear to change at more senior analyst roles. Most of my colleagues were involved in similar kinds of work and often much drier. - The senior analysts do not have enough management experience. Some were very good. Some exhibited patterns of unprofessional behaviour, making working a serious challenge. This is crucial because the working culture is intensely collaborative. - The career progression is slow. Even RAs, (3+ years) have marginal input on any of the interesting economics/finance aspects of the cases. - I found that my personal morals conflicted heavily with many of the firms represented. This would have changed my mind about joining.

Explore other reviews about Cornerstone Research

5.0
Jun 17, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

catered lunches, friendly and supportive management

Cons

none that i can think of

4.0
Apr 20, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- interesting, stimulating work with high impact on regulations and industries. - people are mentorship focused and willing to teach and foster growth. Strong analyst community that is unique compared to many jobs right out of undegrad. - great way to break into data, econometrics, and finance work. - high pay and stable growth structure over time.

Cons

- hours can get crazy (60+ hour weeks, working til 4 AM) and with very limited flexibility towards a personal life unless you have children (and even then, the flexibility is not always there). - not very diverse. It varies office to office but overall it is still a mostly straight, white, male-dominated company. The company also silently gutted the internal DEI structures due to the new administration. - unclear if HR takes issues of harassment or poor behavior from upper management seriously. Many higher ups seem to not face any consequences. - often times you will have to work on unsavory projects (supporting harmful companies or practices). - limited mobility upwards from the analyst level (some offices will sponsor graduate school or direct promotion to the senior level, some do not). - slow to change regarding company policies and practices (e.g., slow on the AI adoption). - can be a very unstructured environment. People can have the same role but vastly different experiences.

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