Ford

Many opportunities to learn skills or change positions; there is a master's degree program that is partially funded.

Good pay and benefits; frequent performance reviews with regular pay increases.

Understanding of work-life balance; flexible to your career or personal goals.

Work with knowledgeable and motivated people.

Get to work on interesting projects that provide adequate challenges.

You can get access to leading-edge software and equipment; the company supports applied skills such as CAD or CAE.

• Detroit... ; Suburbs are actually nice, just don't get your hopes up for city living.

• Poor onboarding structure; the first year is trial by fire. IT can be slow and confusing, and there are many pitfalls and barriers to obtaining equipment and access. There are no good onboarding events. I never got a free t-shirt :(

• Outdated dress code; I'd rather be comfortable than pretentious.

• Some workspaces need an overhaul. I worked in a cube farm, but some teams work in modern open-plan offices which are much nicer. It's just not consistent.

We need to do a better job catering to young professionals, considering they are the future of your company.

Here are some things that are limiting interest from young professionals:

• An outdated dress code. It needs to be more casual.
• Limited single apartment living options close to work. This was a large issue for me when moving to Michigan.
• A poor onboarding structure. We need better social and networking events.
• Cube farms need to be eradicated.
• Give your employees free t-shirts. It's not that expensive! How am I supposed to express pride in my company if I don't have any swag?