Company: Microsoft
Date: 2015-03-03
Overall rating: 5/5
Employment status: former

Microsoft's been very, very good to me
Pros: I worked for Microsoft for 20 years and I couldn't be happier to be a cheerleader in the market place and workforce for my former company. Microsoft has been doing excellent innovation, and it was a pleasure to have been a part of the corporation and see the evolution of those products and services. During my tenure, I went from a technical writer to a director, and felt Microsoft had my back as an employee. The company has clear values that put customers first but never at the expense of the employees. We worked toward clear goals in my organization (Office) and were rewarded for innovation and results. The everyday benefits of working for Microsoft are simply amazing -- great 5 star restaurants (I wouldn't call them cafeterias), soccer fields, baseball diamonds, fantastic medical benefits that include vision and dentistry, employee stock purchase plan, generous 401K, and the pay is on the high side for the industry.
Cons: While Microsoft was a growing enterprise, the work/life balance was tilted toward the work end of the equation. However, it started to become clear that employee burnout is not a good strategy, and Microsoft started putting a higher emphasis on work/life balance.