Boeing

The experience: they usually use the latest in software and manufacturing tools. There are usually excellent training resources available, even funded. The mostly cubicle office spaces, facilities, and cafeteria are usually clean and decent. One can visit the major assembly and flightline areas without too much trouble to observe aircraft being built. There are some good folks in senior or knowledge positions, but you may have to discover who they are for yourself. I made some good friends there; most of my coworkers were pretty decent folks.

Typical large company politics, cronyism, and nepotism.

Corporate guidelines for ethical conduct appear to exist for legal reasons only. You're pretty much at the mercy of your supervisor. Sometimes you get lucky, but if you're not, you may have no choice but to quit.

When I was there, I saw some peers do virtually nothing yet maintain their job or even advance, while honest worker bees got meaningless trinkets and toys for their efforts.

It was often a training ground for junior-level employees who'd quit once they had enough experience to go elsewhere.

One could be transferred to locations, distant commutes from their residence, without consideration. You might wind up training your replacement—in Russia.

1. Supply chain bean counters are not gods. I worked on a project where the architectural wizard/manager assembled a team that reduced costs, automated production, and greatly improved accuracy. After he retired, that project was scrapped and the subassemblies outsourced overseas. Last I heard, things were so screwed up by these vendors they had to bring everything back.

2. If enough people are quitting a particular supervisor, you might want to look into it. A supervisor I had was quite likely a Machiavellian/psychopath. It's not much fun to work for somebody who steals ideas then takes full credit, runs a sweatshop, bullies expendable underlings into doing risky dirty work, only gives raises to henchmen, and fires employees on a whim, while they are rarely ever in the office doing actual work themselves.

3. If you're an upper-level manager who gives out an award to some grunt who's been 'going the extra mile,' at least try to remember their face the next time you see them. Remembering their name would be a bonus.

4. I had four managers during my time there. Two were pretty good—professionally and personally. One was a worthless absentee boss who may have had some kind of mental disorder, possibly senility, which might have been tolerable if he didn't have a moody, mean streak. The fourth was the nightmare I was forced to escape from (described in #2 above). Overall, based on other places I'd worked, I'd say par for the course (except for what's described in #2 above).

5. "World class" may describe the product, but the work environment was typical large corporate. But why would any senior manager who's jumped the hoops ever want to change that?