Bridgewater Associates Employee Reviews

I worked there for the last 6 years. Great company and great people who truly cared about your success. Work life balance can be tought sometimes but it seems likes management is working to improve this.

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Great culture & people

Management Associate (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - November 28, 2023

Intense place to work and certainly not for everyone, but they are very up front about this. Really great people and culture of development and challenging you to develop against both your strengths and weaknesses.

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Bridgewater Associates insights

Based on 31 survey responses

What people like

Ability to meet personal goals
Ability to learn new things
Fair pay for job

Quite the place

Analyst (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - October 8, 2023

Learned a lot, challenging place that can help you grow if you can handle it. Outstanding benefit, decent compensation compared to industry peers. Tough noncompete that they will enforce.

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Exceptional company

Accountant (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - July 27, 2023

At the time the work was a bit routine but the overall company was exploding and profitable. Ultimately chose to move on as I required more work/life balance.

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Difficult but rewarding experience

Intern (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - July 14, 2023

Interning at BW is a truly unique experience. While at times stressful, the internship enables lots of growth and learning. The full time employees are doing their best to help you demonstrate your capacity. And though there are some quizzes and examinations, this is true at lots of firms (implicitly or explicitly), so at least BW is extremely straightforward with how they evaluate their interns.

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Great place to work

Accounting Manager (Current Employee) - Westport, CT - July 5, 2023

Great place to work for Many benefits and perks to take advantage off.Pay is great and allow for hybrid/remote work.Interview process is fairly long but needed as they try to hire the right people to fit into the company culture.Overall great place to be.

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My favorite place

Recruiting (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - March 29, 2023

Bridgewater culture will be for some and not others (but realize that will come with any company!) My personal experience was great - Across all departments people are willing to provide feedback and help you develop. I personally find I learned and developed more there in a few years than I would have in 10 years. To be fair, they expect you to perform well but you are rewarded very well in my opinion.

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Toxic, abusive and paranoid culture which pays people way above the market to attract and retain them.

Management Associate (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - March 27, 2023

What is the best part of working at the company?Compensation is exceptional. This is what attracts people to the company. And this is how they own their employees. What is the most stressful part about working at the company?The company requires all employees to learn The Principles. Employees are tested weekly and graded on their knowledge. Employees must complete weekly quotas citing other employees doing something wrong. Failure to complete these assessments result in termination. There are cameras in every office, meeting room and hallway, and all meetings must be recorded. What is the work environment and culture like at the company?Toxic and abusive culture where they indoctrinate employees into the Bridgewater way. People regularly work 12-16 hour days, no work life balance and spend at least 50% of their time being picked apart in meetings. What is a typical day like for you at the company?About 50% each day filling required quotas logging in people for doing anything “wrong”, taking tests on the Principles and in long, drawn out meetings picking people apart.

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Great comp and benefits packages

Executive Assistant (Current Employee) - Westport, CT - February 3, 2023

Bridgewater has great comp and benefits packages, as well as other perks provided (free meals, onsite wellness offerings). The company and its employees really care for each other.

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Fun and challenging place to work

Executive Assistant (Current Employee) - Westport, CT - September 10, 2021

Bridgewater is a challenging place. Everyone there promotes self growth and wants to see you succeed. I really enjoy working for a place with such a strong sense of purpose and culture.

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Good

associate (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - July 30, 2021

loved it there, good place to start off in the financial sector, you will not regret it. unique culture and management with seemingly great transparency are benefits.

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its an indoctrination camp

Head of Research Data Platform & Analytics (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - February 18, 2021

beyond the need to get your job done and doing that well, you need to prove that you drink their cool-aid. The fact there is no privacy and every thing you say and do is recorded and could be brought up for future scrutiny. It creates an extremely stressful environment where one wrong move or word said will end your career there and cost you your job.

Pros

the grounds for the main office is very pretty

Cons

working for big brother...

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Transparent and Goal Oriented

Admin (Current Employee) - Westport, CT - December 20, 2020

If you are looking for a career that provides you 100% transparency and is committed to the company goals, this would be the place to start. With that said, this company may not be for you if you are likely to be defensive and unwilling to receive feedback to better enhance your performance / output for the company.

Pros

Compensation, Career Development, Work/Life Balance

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culture quite interesting and rewarding

Product Manager (Former Employee) - New York, NY - October 26, 2020

overall, an interesting journey: care a lot about personal growth and professional growth. principles are ingrained in daily interactions. work is challenging.

Pros

remote work during pandemic

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Fun Amenities, but very, very tough culture. Long work hours

Senior Client Service Associate (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - June 15, 2020

Didn't feel supported at all. The farther away you get from the inventor of the Principles (Ray Dalio), the more bastardized the interpretation becomes. Speaking to him directly, things make sense. Speaking to a twenty-something right out of college on the same subject leaves you scratching your head.

Pros

Free Lunches, Great Medical Benefits

Cons

Tough culture. Need to be very thick-skinned

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It takes a strong will

Legal Coordinator (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - February 29, 2020

Worth the experience Very dynamic Fast paced can be harsh but you learn so much it’s worth it Will take you outside your comfort zone Think of it as a learning experience

Pros

Good cimp

Cons

Harsh reviews

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An experience like no other

Manager Support Associate (Former Employee) - Stamford, CT - February 23, 2020

Long hours but a very rewarding job. Hardest part about the job is that Bridgewater is known for their strong culture. Although very challenging, it is the best thing that I have ever experienced. Excellent pay and benefits.

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Too many hours (billable) and gained lots of good experience.

Project Manager (Former Employee) - Wilton, CT - February 11, 2020

Highly recommend working there, if capable of passing the interview. Very pleasant working environment with lots of good networking capabilities. Interview is hard to pass, but much worth the effort if able to land a job.

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Culture is tough.

Administrator to Talent Leader, Investment Engine Technology (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - February 7, 2020

Radical Transparency mindsets very difficult for experiential candidates and new employees coming from other firms. Very stressful environment and very fast paced. Not for everybody.

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Good place to be right out of school

Finance associate (Current Employee) - Stamford, CT - February 2, 2020

I think this is a good experience to have out of school because I went in with an open mind. Learned a lot about finance and gained good experience. I would only recommend this company to certain types of people who can handle the culture.

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Great company to work for but may lack personal fulfillment for ambitious individuals

Leverager (Former Employee) - Westport, CT - January 29, 2020

I had an amazing experience at Bridgewater Associates; however, I decided to leave because I didn't see a long term career path given the industry. You will learn more about yourself and others than anywhere else. Highly recommend if you are open minded, logical, and low ego.