Company: IBM
Date: 2009-10-21
Overall rating: 3/5
Employment status: former

Not what it used to be
Pros: Internet Security Systems was an amazing place to work.  IBM Internet Security Systems is not.  There are some distinct perks to working at a company like IBM, though.  For one thing, it seems to be easy to get lost in the shuffle and get by doing the bare minimum, collecting a salary for not a lot of effort.   Also, the benefits package is unparalleled in the IT business - assuming you're a blue-badged employee, of course.   They have the best teleworker infrastructure and culture of any company in the world, hands down.
Cons: ISS division management seems to be bent on running the product (as opposed to service) side of the business into the ground.   Jobs are being outsourced left and right, almost entirely to barely-competent engineering teams in India, and product quality has suffered The IBM bureaucracy makes it impossible to get anything done in a reasonable (and commercially-meaningful) amount of time.   If you don't like concalls, you'll HATE working for IBM.   The robust teleworker culture means that physical facilities are VERY badly neglected - I've visited dozens of IBM office during my time there, and never saw one that didn't look run down.