Pros
True the work\life balance is great... depending on the project(s) you're on. Great opportunity to travel: -Traveled along the East Coast for 8 months -Chicago for 2 months -Toledo for 1 month -San Jose for 3 weeks UST allows you to step outside your comfort zone, expand your knowledge, and put you into challenging projects to promote growth. Great place for someone new to the TECH world. I have a business background (degrees in Marketing/Management), but UST has help to broaden my understanding! Great ethnically diverse company. People stemming from all over the world and across the country.
Cons
Unfortunately, the longer I've been with UST the more I'm coming to the conclusion that vertical growth is difficult to achieve! Horizontal job changes are common and often you'll find that you'll be added onto multiple projects with out a compensation change. ^^^ That was me venting a little!^^^ Lets break that down 1) Constant changes: Been with the company for 16 months. I've been on 6 projects. 2 of those projects were cancelled, and 2 I've step in to fill in for roles until they were filled, and the other two I maintain active on. 2)On-Boarding!!! For almost all projects you start the allocation process is inefficient, slow, and lack of communication among project managers with corporate can be laughable! 3) Corporate Teams: -travel team: constantly messes up travel request often causing me to pay out of pocket until corrections are made (usually very slow) *** could go on for days about this**** -Allocation Team: group responsible for adjusting my allocations to multiple projects. Twice they've just forgot to allocate me causing me to be dumped into the "talent pool" while i was working on new project. Even after being told by project leads where to transfer me they still messed it up or failed to do anything! -Expense team: Travel life is all out of pocket. NO Per Diem*** ... You then submit your expenses. I've had 2 separate occasions where I was simple just not reimbursed! 4)Management: Managers look out for other project managers. UST managers would rather allow a manager to take on multiple projects than to promote someone internally. Or they love to tell you you're a key candidate for the next project lead or team lead, but then that project never comes or doesn't require a team lead or new project lead. -Feels like you're constantly being lied too honestly. They want to keep you on projects because you do good work and lead you on, but when push comes to shove its always horizontal moves like i previously said. 5) Lack of cross project communication: This one really only effects those able and willing to do multiple projects. Problem, the managers don't usually communicate with each other and that often times effects the employee negatively. 6) No performance reviews unless you request one!