Company: Microsoft
Date: 2013-10-20
Overall rating: 3/5
Employment status: current
Experience level: Junior

Know the game before you enter...Play it well and you can thrive
Pros: Compensation is great. You get to use the best of technology, including laptops, tablets and phones. Training is never ending, and there are tons of diverse opportunities to explore.
Cons: Employee performance measurement and stack ranking. Despite described process and reviews, under the hood a major component of your assessment is subjective. 

You will be assigned a rank upon review, with 1 being the best, 5 the worst. If you are assigned a 5 - look for a new job, there is no recovery. Combine this with frequent organizational redesign and there is risk of the stack ranking being used as a tool for "right-sizing" – despite your contribution. 

Stack ranking also is detrimental to team work. You are measured against your peers. Managers must rank a percentage of employees in each of the 5 levels. So if you help your peers, it could affect your assessment - and will is all the team is performing well. Someone HAS to be a 5...