No culture, silos are growing, each department is its own organization, little oversight - management disconnected! - Anonymous employee Ares Management Employee Review

1.0
3 Mar 2015
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Newly public company gives you an opportunity to possibly to grow; but you need to push and play the game. Competitive salary, time-off (if you can get it) and bonus, nice working environment (offices are modern), catered lunch & breakfast, opportunity to travel for many and dedicated assistants to mid-level employees. Company is growing (which can also be a sign of poor planning and excessive need).

Cons

Favoritism rules. Departments do not really interact, nor is cross functioning encouraged. IT lives up to the stereotype; full of impatient know-it-all's. HR is slow and poorly managed, stuck in their offices and usually helpless; slow processes and some incompetent people; recruitment process lags. Management does not seem connected outside of their specific departments. No one is creating a culture. A lot of useless titles and mid-level management. Anyone familiar to investment firms should be prepared for poor work/life balance. As usual, if you're not making the company millions of dollars, you're just a lukewarm body that better kiss the right butt.

Explore other reviews about Ares Management

5.0
11 May 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Very collaborative culture with a strong connected leadership team; a high-growth organization that provides great opportunities for performing team members - many examples of strong mobility (employees growing through promotion as well as employees moving locations and teams). I have been with the firm for more than 5 years and it has been a completely positive experience - I've grown significantly in responsibility and compensation.

Cons

Nothing that comes to mind.

2.0
8 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Prestige, Good Benefits, snacks in the fridge Some teams are very good. Ideal for someone in their 40s or 50s who is looking for stability.

Cons

All teams are different at a company of this size, but working in the middle office technology team was the worst experience of my career. Day to day work was either completely free of directive or projects would be completely blocked by bureaucracy. When a project I was working on went well, there was no celebration and when it was late or had issues there was no reflection. The culture is going into work to a cubicle to sit in zoom meeting straight from nine to five or eating lunch alone each day in a ghost town office. Other teams will speak poorly of each other and gossip. My boss's boss was a bully and would threaten people constantly. Everyone I worked with was "living the dream", overworked and bored to death but making a ton of money. Every team outing they had in three years was just a golf simulator. It just doesn't have to be like this. We've moved on from this cubicle farm company since the 90s, work should be encouraging and fun. Unless you're looking for stability above all else, you can find a better place to work.

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