Company: Microsoft
Date: 2014-09-18
Overall rating: 2/5
Employment status: former
Experience level: Junior

Chronic culture, leadership, and strategy problems, and outlook is unclear
Pros: Despite year over year reductions, benefits are good, particularly for families. They also have a few nice perks, though not as much as Google or Facebook. You can learn a lot here when you are starting out.
Cons: Hypocrisy, competition, and back-stabbing are ingrained in the culture. If you are a smart straight shooter who focuses on results and has great relationships with co-workers (as the "company values" recommend), that is *not* enough. You must play the political game, particularly if you go into management. If you don't play politics, your best option is to stay out of management and quickly find a politically-savvy manager who appreciates, rewards, and fights for you. If you are lucky enough to find such a manager, you'll be put on the fast track. If not, you may have to watch your career stagnate, falling far behind peers who contribute less than half as much as you do.