Microsoft

You get a chance to work on things that a lot of people will use. You get to use new technologies and learn new things.

Work/life balance is very important, and people take it very seriously. While there is sometimes crunch time, almost nobody looks at you funny for wanting to go home and be with your family.

I have found that excellence is highly rewarded, and that management, from direct to upper, really try to show you they appreciate you.

While it has its downsides, the quality that you ship is amazing, due to the insane amount of testing, integration periods, etc.

We created Vista.

Microsoft is not sexy. When we try to be sexy, it usually comes out retarded. We create as-high or higher quality products, overall, as other companies, but we are too business-oriented and not enough consumer-oriented.

Our greatest advantage is also our disadvantage. The amount of legacy we have may give us an edge in some markets, but it also bogs us down when it comes to innovating.

We give in to various organizations where we should be more keyed towards being pro-consumer. This has to do with DRM and other things, on which we spend way too much money and time.

We are slow to react when our company is in the lead. This costs us time and time again.

Consumers, consumers, consumers. Make products that are not only good, but that people will actually want to use. If this means we have to change the models we use to do things, so be it. If we need to produce our own handsets because HTC, Samsung, and Motorola keep futzing up the hardware, let's do it. We did it for Zune (great success, that....)

Stop with the boring commercials. Stop being so buttoned up, stop being "inspirational." Just stop. It's stupid. Be funny, be edgy.