Company: EY
Date: 2009-03-23
Overall rating: 4/5
Employment status: current

I love working in EY Tax
Pros: The best reasons for me are three: great training, great reputation and great diversity. I LOVE the EY continuing education and training seminars. They are practical, useful and well-delivered. I have learnt more from them than I did in graduate school. I think the effort to educate employees shows that the company really is interested in its employees. 

The next good point: reputation. EY is an established firm. People respect us in the accounting and tax fields and, no, the firm is not part of any sort of semi-legal Wall Street type scheme!

Finally, I really like the fact that I work with people from all classes and backgrounds: Asian, Black, Hispanic, Indian, White, and recent immigrants, too. The place fosters respect for all of these groups just by virtue of having them there: it would be hard to work with someone if you don't value and respect their culture and their worldview. This doesn't mean that you become best friends but you have a decent level of cultural awareness.

Now is the time to point out that there may be differences between the Tax and Audit departments at the firm in terms of the work hours and the overall treatment of staff members. Audit is very stressful and demanding and some of the partners are just too stressed and burnt out to realize that they miss on simple human things like greeting you in the elevator. You have to give them credit for trying, though.

Another thing to point out is that EY makes great efforts to get involved in charity work. I respect and admire that. 

Let me say a couple of words about working in a cubicle: it is not bad at all. People respect your privacy despite the fact that you have no office space and you do get plenty of room for your personal items and for many of the work-related manuals and training materials which you want to keep because, they are GREAT.  Also, the tech support from the the team that assists with your laptop will always be adequate and timely.  My impression of a couple of EY offices that I have visited is that they are nicely furnished and comfortable and many have large windows. 

In general, most people at EY work very hard to make the money they get. With limited exceptions, people are not arrogant and you would not encounter the type of (pardon my French) jerks that frequent the investment banking and law firm world (believe me, I have been to those worlds as well, and I am not speaking out of malice, just based on experience). 

I see myself working for the firm for at least a decade. :-)
Cons: I have a JD degree and for me the major downside is COMPENSATION. I would have been paid better at a law firm but I do not work crazy hours at EY. 

Another downside is that some people at the firm are extremely competitive which prevents them from forming normal human relationships with others. You will find that these are usually seniors and senior managers going crazy about their life master plan to make partner. I have not risen to that level yet and I do not look forward to sharing responsibility with some of these folks. They need to come down to earth but I don't know whether they would or how.

Another downside is the stiff dress up code. Someone somewhere invented the myth that women look more professional with straight hair and that we should all wear gray and black all day. Yes, there are people who go astray and there are other people who have the time and the malice to watch them and to report them to senior management. So, just buy 5 gray suits and ignore this. This will change as the world becomes more open and diverse. It really is not a big deal if you demonstrate an effort to comply with specific expectations. 

The final downside I can think of is the issue of "being green" and not wasting paper. The management is making an effort to foster a paperless environment but so far, success is somewhat limited. You will never have to print as many things in your whole life probably as you do during one  work week at EY. I must admit that this makes me sad sometimes and that I am a culprit myself.