Pros
Excellent opportunity to learn new technologies and grow professionally. Some of the smartest bunch of technical people. Company invests a lot of money and time in training employees on Microsoft technologies and soft skills -- in-person, virtual instructor led, self-paced, third party, you name it. Awesome training group, much better than most Microsoft technology companies. Excellent infrastructure for knowledge sharing, networking and beta testing of new Microsoft technologies. Great benefits. Opportunity to travel all over the US. Depending on whether travel fits your life style, this could be a minus.
Cons
Top heavy -- Way too many managers in every service line. This creates a lot of clumsy processes and also hampers career growth for everyone else. Depending on whether you are in consulting or ATS service line, noticeable difference in organizational respect and in benefits. Career Manger role is mostly a formality; your manager won't care as long as your billing hours are high and your project manager did not give you bad rating. They lack organizational maturity and/or backbone to resolve your issues. Promotional opportunity depends on how well you click with your regional and service line leadership. Avanade delivery managers try to imitate Accenture PMs. I don't understand why every project needs clones. Most of these managers don't seem to care about the team's wants and needs and behave like slave masters. They are on the project mainly because of their chargeability; not to add value. They will nickel and dime you on salary negotiations.
