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Optiver

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4.5
  • 1,000 - 50,000 employees

Optiver Reviews

Based on 15 surveyed graduates working at Optiver. Read on to get an insider’s view on life as a graduate.
4.5
Based on 15 reviews

Pros & Cons

  • Collaborating with very smart and friendly people on tricky but interesting problems
  • Excellent pay and perks. Good culture, friendly colleagues and reasonable work life balance. Excellent opportunities to take ownership of products and responsibility, even for new grads.
  • Very tight knit grad cohort makes for a good work environment.
  • The people - everyone is really smart, really interesting, and really driven. Coming to work feels kind of like when I started going to university with the number of different ideas floating around. The responsibility - Optiver is kind of like a massive start up in that everyone gets the chance to take responsibility for large areas and can progress quickly.
  • The work is continually interesting, the perks are amazing, and there is a good culture around work hours and succeeding
  • Great perks: built in breakfast, lunch and coffee. Awesome games room with pool, Nintendo switch and table tennis. Free gym membership and massages on Wednesday. People are friendly and smart, and you learn a lot on the job. You never feel board with what you're doing, as the problems are challenging and interesting. Managers are great, they value one on one meetings, and helping employees improve. The annual company trip is awesome.
  • Can be more stressful / pressure than other places
  • Fast paced environment isn't for everyone. You need to stay on top of your projects' requirements and stakeholders at all times.
  • There will be a lot to learn, you will feel like a complete beginner in most areas of the business. You may question your knowledge/ability because everyone is talented.
  • Trading is a stressful job. This comes both from the markets and the high performance nature of everyone at Optiver but I wouldn't trade it in for another job.
  • The amount of work is constant, and you have to be fairly self directed from the get go
  • There is always challenging work, there's no time to slack off!

What Insiders Say

8.8
Career Prospects
8.8
Career Prospects
There are relatively fast progression opportunities for employees depending on aptitude and success. The review and promotion system is relatively transparent, so you should understand your progression well.
8.2
Corporate Social Responsibility
8.2
Corporate Social Responsibility
Charity markets - proceeds donated to winning charity - Sponsor bee farm - Donate excess food - Charity leave - Wear it Purple Day - NAIDOC week with guest speakers, performances and cuisine - International Women's day
8.7
Culture
8.7
Culture
During a typical day, I have discussions with my mentor about my progress, or anything I find difficult or confusing. I spend a lot of it problem-solving independently, and have been given a lot of freedom to create solutions.
6.6
Diversity
6.6
Diversity
Representation of ethnic minorities, LGBT people, parents, etc is very good. Representation of women is poor. Particularly outside of the talent/recruitment/office management/back office teams. However, there is a strong and active effort to rectify this from management and recruiting, there are women in senior positions.
8.9
Satisfaction
8.9
Satisfaction
During a typical day, I have discussions with my mentor about my progress, or anything I find difficult or confusing. I spend a lot of it problem-solving independently, and have been given a lot of freedom to create solutions.
8.4
Management
8.4
Management
Managers are very accessible at all levels. There's a strong feedback culture and you will get regular feedback from your manager both adhoc and in formal reviews.
8.5
Office Work Environment
8.5
Office Work Environment
The office space is being newly renovated, bringing a clean, open floor plan for collaboration. There is a great entertainment area on the top floor, and an in-house kitchen for chefs to prepare our lunches. There is no dress code! I've seen people rock up in pajamas if you really wanted to.
8.8
Recruitment
8.8
Recruitment
Five steps - resume, online technical, phone call behavioural, phone call technical, and final interview day (on zoom) with two major interviews, one behavioural and one technical. Then invite to office for offer day
9.5
Salary
9.5
Salary
The pay is very competitive for the industry, and the bonus incentivizes everyone to work collectively and improve the company.
8.9
Training
8.9
Training
Various sustainability programs. Both external (e.g. funding forests and habitat reconstruction) and internal (e.g. rainwater use, recycling programs and waste minimization efforts).
7.9
Work Hours
7.9
Work Hours
Five steps - resume, online technical, phone call behavioural, phone call technical, and final interview day (on zoom) with two major interviews, one behavioural and one technical. Then invite to office for offer day
7.9
Sustainability
7.9
Sustainability
Various sustainability programs. Both external (e.g. funding forests and habitat reconstruction) and internal (e.g. rainwater use, recycling programs and waste minimization efforts).