Pros
Got to work with a lot of great people. Interesting work, industry & products. Austin area is nice, better than Houston where other oilfield jobs are. Opportunities for growth in the past. Culture was good in the past. Said values were quite admirable ("Gung Ho Values") but not lived out, especially at the management level.
Cons
Poor leadership and management at the upper & mid-upper level. Good leaders get frustrated by the poor leadership above them. Communication between leadership and grass-roots is poor - there's some communication, but not what's needed. Direction is not clear, and what direction & strategy is presented doesn't make sense and is poorly explained, no clear tie to work really being done. Pay is below Austin area average. Advancement seems to be based on relationships rather than capability. Employee development is more said than really done - each employee is pretty much on their own for that. Benefits have dwindled over time. Cyclical nature of the oil & gas industry presents challenges and salaries & wages suffer accordingly, such as no raises multiple years in a row, layoffs every few years producing times of under-staffing resulting in over-worked & over-stressed staff and/or low morale, which seems to indicate the inability of upper management to deal with the dips in the industry to properly invest in the future.