Cisco

Cisco Systems at its San Jose location offers a good work-life balance. There are lots of perks, including an on-site health center, gym, and car wash. Work hours are pretty flexible and can be managed easily if you have a decent manager.

The worst thing about working at Cisco is the limited job growth the company offers. Managers believe in building empires and maintaining a strict hierarchy. A quite large percentage of employees are at mid to senior level, and most see Cisco as an employer where they can relax and draw a decent salary without being very innovative or working hard. Still, somehow, the stress level is too high.

The management should take a look at the quality of mid- and senior-level software development managers. The performance evaluation process is very one-sided. The company needs to implement a 360-degree evaluation process.