The Scoop

Despite its rapid growth, U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray continues to focus on emerging-growth companies. In its 1998 fiscal year, the firm represented private companies in 64 percent of the 67 M&A deals it advised on. (The 67 deals represented a total of $4.9 billion; the firm posted a total transaction value 75 percent greater than it had in 1997.) Piper's had some large clients also - the firm served as an underwriter in a $709 million stock offering by health care giant Medtronic in September 1998. A list of recent deals and offerings the firm has handled is available at the firm's web site, located at www.piperjaffray.com.

Getting Hired

U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray's web site, located at www.piperjaffray.com, provides a listing of current job opportunities and contact addresses. Applicants can submit their resumes to the Employment Department at the company's corporate headquarters. Most new employees in the investment banking department are industry-assigned at hire based on their preference or previous related experience. They also have the latitude to pursue other specialties in the event they wish to change focus.

In investment banking, Piper's analyst recruiting covers about 50 major colleges and universitites with actual campus visits at about six schools. Associate recruiting has been focused on the top 10 Ivy League schools for the past 15 years. In the last five years, the firm has formalized the associate recruiting process to include on-campus presentations and interviews with dinners for pre-selected candidates. "They definitely recruit from the top five schools - they draw a lot from Chicago and Northwestern because they're in the Midwest, but they have a lot of Harvard Business School people," reports one insider. "Also, they opened an office in Menlo Park (and San Francisco), and are hiring a lot in Stanford too." (The firm has recruited from Stanford for a while; that contact indicates that it has recently been hiring more from the school.)

Unlike other I-banks, U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray doesn't do most its hiring through summer programs. As one insider explains: "People who want to do I-banking don't necessarily want to do a summer in Minnesota." "They want to get the best candidates they can, but they don't want them to leave six months later, either. I think they try to hire people who have Piper Jaffray as their first or second choice.

The sneaky may do well to try to get hired by the equity research firm Dain Rauscher. "Dain has a prestigious reputation in the Midwest, but not nationally," reports one insider. "However, Dain and Piper raid each other all the time, so if you work at Dain, you can easily be lured to Piper in two years with big money."

Our Survey Says

High-level

U.S Bancorp Piper Jaffray employees call their firm's work environment a "superb" place to begin a career, thanks to an "interactive" atmosphere and "genial" colleagues who help new hires "learn the subtleties of the business." Explains one insider: "Traditionally they've been a very top-heavy firm. They don't win deals based on their name recognition. They win based on research, and because the companies that work with them know they're going to get senior-level attention. So they don't leverage analysts as much as other firms do - senior people need to be more involved." This means, in part, that moving up the ladder at the firm is somewhat easier than at larger firms. In fact, promotions can happen rapidly: one insider reports that associates can move up to the VP level in two years.

The firm is also different when it comes to job responsibilities for junior bankers. "Associates don't do any modeling, analysts do all the modeling. You could literally never do a model there if you're an associate," reports one insider. "It's great for an analyst because you do all the models, including the complex ones. The associates get a lot of client time, they're always included in the meetings." I-banking analysts can stay on for a third year, and, in rare instances, can be promoted to associate without getting an MBA. "It was a dramatic mind change," reports one insider about this possible career path. "Four years ago they wouldn't let anyone [move up without an MBA]."

Good pay (especially for MN)

The firm offers "healthy salaries" that tend to vary with the performance of the stock market and "some of the best employee benefits" in the industry, including an "unbeatable" employee stock ownership program. When it comes to starting pay, the firm isn't all that different from the big boys back East. Reports one insider: "First-year associates can get paid close to what they get paid in New York. Where it gets skewed is in the four or five years and up. Here, people make a million dollars but it's not the rule. But here, people can buy a huge house for $250,000 10 minutes out of town." Also, reports an I-banking insider: "You get to expense meals if you work past 7."

Stuffy dress and management

At Piper, you'll be wearing "formal business attire, long sleeves, dark blue or gray - plus a huge down parka during the winters!" However, "Fridays are casual days, and one sees a lot of L.L. Bean." Some employees also complain about bureaucracy at the company: "The corporate culture is a bit stuffy and prone to micro-management," says one employee. "There is a lot of red tape," concurs another contact.

More women please

Insiders comment that "Piper, like Minnesota itself, is homogenous, with few minorities," though "it is an open environment and the only criteria for advancement is hard work." Says another insider: "I think Minnesota in general, doesn't have a strong mix of ethnicity. If you wanted strong cultural diversity, you'd be somewhere else." However, says that I-banking contact: "I think they're very good with the male/female ratio. They're not 50/50 at the top, but they definitely have some strong women there."

Good location for families

Minneapolis has some advantages aside from the cost of living, however. Reports one insider: "There's a lot of young people. They've got Pillsbury and General Mills and the banks. The downtown area's not that big, and you run into a lot of people - they've also got the Timberwolves, the Vikings and the Twins, so there's a lot of entertainment to do at night." You might want to qualify entertainment as "family entertainment" though, because while "it's a phenomenal place to be if you're married and want to have kids. If you're single, it's not the best place. Most people are married." (Despite that insider's contention, Piper's headquarters I-banking department employs about 50 single professionals.)

Morale still strong

How has Piper Jaffray's recent acquisition affected life at the bank? "It is affecting morale, though not as much in the investment banking division." Says one I-banking insider: "It's still run the same as a wholly-owned subsidiary - and they haven't affected compensation."

Quality of life better than in New York

Because of Piper Jaffray's Midwestern location, employees usually start the day early, in order to be open during East Coast market hours. For I-bankers, "the hours are extreme, 12 to 14 hours a day, plus weekends for bankers, thought it's still not quite as bad as New York." Says one former analyst: "You work hard, but they allow you to have a life. Workweeks are in the range of 70 to 80. You do work on weekends but it's not all weekend. You work hard, but it's not like New York. If you had a birthday party, or concert tickets - you can get away. A lot of times you have to cancel, but it's not like other places. Here they're more lenient - it's the Midwestern values."

Employment Contact

Rose Koning
Human Resources

Key Competitors

A.G. Edwards & Sons;Dain Rauscher;William Blair

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