Epic Systems

They have a very good reputation with their customers and are by far the best EMR company in sales and future vision. Their pay is also very good, even by West Coast standards. In the Midwest, you live like royalty.

This may depend on the team, but the hours hover around 44 a week, with more time if you're working on a high-priority issue (which happens often because we deal with patients' lives). It's definitely workable, though. I never felt overworked.

It's also a company you could legitimately work for forever. It's a very stable environment with minimal challenges.

No transferable experience. If you're at Epic, make sure you get yourself on a team that works with web technologies, mobile apps, or something that other employers are looking for. The positions are few on those teams, though.

I've been on the job hunt for 7 months now, and I guarantee you no one is looking for VB6 or Cache developers.

Also, as somebody from the West Coast, Wisconsin was a real culture shock. Expect to find non-confrontational people as a norm and minimally-friendly acquaintances who don't value your existence. The software devs were especially awkward here.

If you grew up in the Midwest, then this might be familiar and could be a pro. I was driven crazy by it.

Finally, middle management is very young. Mentorship was practically non-existent. Although we were given a "mentor" for our first 6 months, no one knew what the word meant. You're essentially working at what amounts to be a college campus, with the average coworker aged roughly 26.

Mentorship is crucial. A paycheck can only go so far.