Pros: Good work-life balance. Work-time flexibility. Single office.

Cons: Low salary. Too many politics. Less challenging projects.

Pros: The best thing about working at Microsoft is being surrounded by bright people. I love the experience of not being the smartest person in the room and being able to learn from my peers. The compensation is reasonable, the benefits are excellent, and there are great opportunities for professional development. An advantage of working for a big company (and something that is entrenched in the Microsoft culture) is the ability to easily switch teams. It's nice to know that if I ever get tired of my current problem space, I have the option of branching out and trying something completely different.

Cons: While I believe Microsoft has been going to great pains to improve its compensation and bonus model, it's still far from perfect. Individual managers wield a huge amount of power when it comes to deciding an employee's review numbers. You are literally relying on your manager to fight for you. If you've been unfortunate enough to get on your manager's bad side, watch out. Adding to this problem is the fact that there's little oversight in the review model. It's frustrating knowing that you risk getting screwed if you're not willing to suck up.

Pros: Smart people all around, nice salary, nice city, and generally, you can finish the job within normal working hours. The supporting team is great.

Cons: It's not that easy to get a promotion, and many people/friends quit their jobs to start up programs where they get paid much more.