Company: Microsoft
Date: 2008-05-23
Overall rating: 5/5
Employment status: current

Microsoft is an exciting place to work with an innovative workplace that allows employees to grow their careers.
Pros: Microsoft treats its employees very well and affords people great opportunities to advance and grow.  I have unbelievable benefits at Microsoft.  I have a great 401K plan to which Microsoft provides 50% matching contributions up to 6% of you salary.  There is and employeestock purchase plan that lets me buy Microsoft stock at a discount.  I receive both cash bonuses and stock bonuses.  There is great work/life balance.  I get three paid weeks of vacation, two floating holidays, and 10 personal/sick days.  I love all the people that I work with.  Everyone treats each ther with respect and people are always willing to help others.  I especially like working in a field office (versus headquarters) because I get the camaraderie and closeness of a small office but the resources of huge, global corporation.
Cons: One of the downsides to working in a field office is that there are less opportunitites for career advancement simply because there aren't as many positions in the field offices.  It also takes careful planning and career management to gain recognition and advance.  It is not only important to impress management, but it is also important to impress your coworkers.  Another downside to working for such a huge corporation is the inflexibility of the organization at times.  Microsoft cannot be as agile and quick to move on new opportunities as smaller companies.  Often, there are too many processes and procedures that can be frustrating at times.  It seems some things could be done in a simpler manner, but Microsoft requires extra steps.