What was the reputation of Lehman pre-financial crisis?

Monkeys, for millennial wall street folks like myself who entered the workforce post-financial crisis, what was the reputation of Lehman Brothers before the financial crisis? How did groups rank against other firms at the time? What were some of the cultural reputations?

Thanks!

7 Comments
 

She, the main girl that I talked to who was at Lehman, said that it was the wild west was how spontaneous the environment was. They would be discussing a deal they were working on and then suddenly decide "we should do a site visit to the firm across the country" and boom they would be on a plane.

When Barclay's acquired Lehman's NA assets, she said that trying to gel the "snooty" culture of Barclay's with the wild west culture of Lehman was a big issue.

 
Most Helpful

Debitis et recusandae labore sapiente. Eum et ipsa debitis quasi enim sint exercitationem deleniti. Deserunt sed totam voluptatem et. Doloribus sit fuga qui repudiandae molestiae ut non perspiciatis. Nihil dignissimos et dicta suscipit unde corporis placeat.

Nihil optio sequi recusandae inventore sunt. Distinctio culpa porro tempora omnis.

Laboriosam ipsam dignissimos at sunt debitis maiores distinctio. Occaecati et doloribus odit est. Est doloribus veniam numquam magni. Iusto nihil dolor asperiores tempora voluptatem consequuntur. Optio dolore illum neque debitis eveniet quasi veritatis.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (50) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (26) $182
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”