Pros
Decent pay and okay work life balance, depending on what finance department you were in. Good co-workers and training opportunities.
Cons
Where to begin...overall culture in finance is very formal and stuffy - prepare to not have any fun. It was a really big deal to have a ping pong tournament - really, ping pong? Very much a hierarchy that you must respect which diminishes any creative thought process. Very high turnover in finance - I think 20-30% which is why there are always a lot of finance really open. Forced rotation system in finance where it expected you'll rotate to another position every few years. They claim it builds skills. I think its builds a workforce that doesn't know their job and builds a lot of risks in the day to day work. Internal audit added no value to the company and senior leadership has been there a long time and is not open to new ways, feedback or ideas. The SVP was very much disjointed from staff level - keeps to his direct reports. Very little communication and very segregated / political in internal audit. Very little budget to do any team activities - new it was a mistake when I bought my own lunch in the cafeteria in my first day, and senior leadership didn't even attend. Welcome aboard! Read the chicago tribune article with the CEO - very telling.
