Cisco

It's a large company, so there's not a lot of opportunity to change the world in engineering, but there is plenty for changing your career through parallel roles, management positions, and training.

Of course, the work is completely flexible with little travel, so the day-to-day can be very predictable.

They really make it "comfortable" for every employee. If you want two monitors, a separate chair, late working hours, and a predictable annual review, then it's not going to be a problem. That's great if you're looking for just this.

Cisco gets all its innovations through acquisitions (or so upper management believes), so there's not a lot of risk taken within the company to do so. Therefore, any mature technologies are in sustaining cost-cutting mode. That means lab budgets are reduced, annual layoffs are common, and the cube space is downsized towards open environments. If you just work to get your work done, this is okay, but if you want your work to be fun and exciting, this is a serious downer. That's why there are fewer young people applying.

Dear Upper Management,

Grow a backbone!

Take some risk and change the world. Your peers will thank you, your engineering teams will love the opportunity, and your group will grow. Stop saying "yes" to your VP boss and think for yourself. Your unyielding commitment to keep your own high-paying job has made your decisions slow and conservative, and you've pushed the intelligence to a higher and even less qualified power.

Thanks.