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11 years and counting: one person's take

Senior Software Engineer
Current Employee
Has worked at Microsoft for 20 years
September 22, 2017
Redmond, Washington
4.0
RecommendsApproves of CEO
Pros

Great benefits, competitive salary (at least at senior level and below), bonus and stock on top of salary, plus additional perks like commuting alternatives (bus pass or Microsoft's Connector service – coach-style bus service from prime locations throughout the area), Prime discounts, and competitive parental leave for mothers or fathers.

A 401K match (or something retirement related) is a must-have in this post-pension world.

The switch from no out-of-pocket healthcare to a high-deductible plan with an HSA was tough, but I personally understand that the former wasn't sustainable. Note that Microsoft feeds the account, and for a healthy family with not much more than regular maintenance health services, you can spend less than the company's contribution. This means the savings will grow and be available in retirement years.

Cons

The usual baggage that comes from a long-established company, like overuse of internal tools instead of industry standard tools, as well as entrenched processes and bureaucracies that can hinder agility and efficiency. This varies from team to team, but several data points I've collected make this feedback relevant. There's progress being made, but in a company this big and old, it takes time.

Competing against others who don't maintain a balance between work and life can leave you on the outside, and that's not uncommon here. Working hard and long hours can get you rewarded with opportunities and promotions, and it's hard to argue against this (if you're doing the work, I guess you should get rewarded). It's just demoralizing when choosing not to de-prioritize family can work against your upward trajectory.

Advice to Management

Keep pushing toward modern practices and tools. Find ways to remain current in developer technologies and methodologies, and ensure it is easy for developers to find time to advance their skills.

If developers feel they are lagging behind the field, they may leave to avoid becoming irrelevant, obsolete, or unhireable.

If your portfolio is your greatest asset, this is moot. But if you agree that your people/talent are your greatest asset, liberate managers from the burden of having to "deliver or else" (or more softly stated, the high pressure to meet the bottom line at the expense of some flexibility for the employees) and allow them to keep talent (their employees) thriving.

See if this doesn't keep the portfolio healthy and the talent happy at the same time. I had managers who exemplified this in the past, but they've all moved on to new companies.

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