Avantages
- Great equity index business. Index products are highly respected in the investment management industry and MSCI generates impressive margins. Check out their investor relations site and you know what I mean. A very profitable business means that, in principle, you can earn good money. But beware: MSCI is shrewd at keeping profits up and employee cost down. Negotiate hard to get what you need up-front as you're unlikely to see much upside in your job. - Management focused on cost control. You will probably experience this as a mixed blessing but it helps to preserve profitability. MSCI hasn't gone crazy acquiring other firms and is unlikely to dump money into hopeless M&A projects. Firm is financially in good shape (again: check financial reports) and has managed its IPO and spin-off from Morgan Stanley well. - Considering its size, MSCI has a very international footprint. You are likely to collaborate with colleagues around the world. You would typically have to join a much larger organisation to get a similar global experience.
Inconvénients
- The Barra business (risk models) is a constant source of frustration. The firm didn't manage the acquisition of Barra well and is still struggling although some signs of improvement are visible. - Management style is top-down, prescriptive and formalistic. Won't suit engineers and quants who look for creative freedom. Management loves global reporting and controlling. It feels like they distrust their employees and constantly feel a need to rein-in and micro-manage. - This isn't your place if you are a programmer or researcher looking to work with the latest tools and push the boundaries. Working at MSCI feels much more like working for a big accounting firm than like working for Google. - The firm has embarked on an ambitious offshoring strategy. If you are looking for a job in Mumbai, Monterrey, or Budapest you're fine. If you look for a job in the US, expect trouble ahead.
