Company: IBM
Date: 2016-10-14
Overall rating: 3/5
Employment status: current
Experience level: Confirmed

Big Blue provide big potential but also big challenges
Pros: The scope and scale of IBM is unmatched. Doing "big things" represent what IBM does best; including driving ww business ecosystems, creating and reinventing markets, and delivering ground breaking technology. It is a good company that gives back to the community and the world through its products, services and philanthropy. It is a generally stable place of employment with options for advancement and options to try your hand at multiple roles and new endeavors during your career.
Cons: IBM is a sales first culture. Everything comes second behind the immediate sale opportunity; including client relationships, employee needs and retention, and everything else. IBM is constantly reinveting itself and currently going through a down cycle as revenue and profitability have missed market expectations for 16 straight quarters. This constant reinvention creates constant shifts in org structure and business strategy that are usually not well communicated or executed, and thus great inconsistency for the employee. This inconsistency causes turmoil, degrades morale, causes talent attrition and limits business results. Also, career advancement does not always equate to equal compensation advancement as many employees find it difficult to gain equivalent compensation through promotion/advancement.