Apple

• Chance to work with some of the smartest minds, depending on the team/project.
• QA engineers usually get to use the latest products for free.
• ESPP and benefits are good.
• Decent maternity/paternity leave benefits.

Clueless middle management interferes too much and changes the scope of the work, leading to frustration.

Favoritism in all forms is very prevalent. The favorites get the best projects, tasks, opportunities, and visibility, while the rest are made to slave away for the betterment of the managers and their favorites.

QA gets treated very badly, and most of the time, it’s because of the middle management who volunteer their engineers for all kinds of tasks out of scope from traditional QA roles.

Promotions are based on favoritism rather than by performance or value added.

Management is solely focused on kingdom building, and this has resulted in lax hiring.

No respect is given to truly knowledgeable people. Promotion is only given to people who can talk loudly, even though it’s just empty noise.

HR will always side with management, and you will get screwed during the review process if you rub anyone in management the wrong way.

Don’t hire smart people only to kill any ideas they may suggest. Don’t micromanage people unless you see a performance issue with the employee. Also, please leave favoritism aside and function professionally.