Microsoft

Great compensation. Great benefits. Flexible WFH. Plenty of resources for advancement/growth (if you can navigate internal company politics). Interesting work when you're not stuck in meetings. Incredibly talented engineers to work with - lots of interesting projects and people to talk to if you're into networking.

Constant micromanagement. Management gets in the way more than they help you.

Not much agency; you have to fight with management to get approval to do anything.

There's a promise of career advancement, but you'll be jumping through hoops for months, then pause when the 'industry is in a difficult spot' and tell you to 'be grateful to have a job'.

Company makes record profits and lays off thousands of staff in the same quarter. Multibillion-dollar company constantly citing 'budget concerns' for not giving raises or promotions.

Internal politics limit advancement. Teams fight over credit for projects since compensation is tied to 'impact' (management decides what that means).

Work moves at a glacial pace. Stuck in meetings and writing word documents for months, and they throw the work out half the time.

Support your engineers more – stop micromanaging and bogging down people with processes that waste everyone's time.

Listen to feedback. So many qualified engineers quit or moved to other teams because they tried to tell you the problem, only to be met with 'that's just how things are.'