Company: IBM
Date: 2009-05-05
Overall rating: 1/5
Employment status: former

I would not recommend this company.
Pros: 10 years ago, IBM had a great reputation, was offering a highly competitive salary, and great benefits.  I was able to take classes to expand my skills, go to conferences, and "flex out" for excessive overtime.  The best thing about IBM was definitely the people I worked with - these were the most hardworking, intelligent, creative thinking people I have ever met.  These employees were truly cream of the crop.  Unfortunately, times have changed, and most of the benefits I initially saw with IBM are long gone, and I don't believe it will get any better.
Cons: I had absolutely no job security, very few raises, and you were expected to work enough hours and overtime time make up for any vacation, sick leave, or other time off - plus an additional percentage.  Funding for education seems to have been frozen for the past 4 years, so forget about any classes unless they are free and downloadable... and taken in whatever spare time you can find.  Any compliments about a job well done were followed with expectations of more, no matter how impossible.  All in all, the last five years my quality of life dropped substantially, and my morale was at an all time low, a sentiment shared with many co-workers.  2009 brought the ax down on many of these wonderful hardworking people - and these people will go to competitors.