Fun at first but then saw the "true colors"
Pros
-I met some people who are life long friends -Traveled south in the winter
Cons
-Promoted work/life balance does not exist and you will be told you are not as "dedicated" in the event you contract H1N1 or want to put your family first. -They hire very young but sometimes it feels more like high school (or middle school.) There is a bell when the staff meeting starts and the soda machine in the food court is only on during certain hours. -Travel in the IS role is expected. What you won't be told when being told how cool travel is that your Monday and Thursday nights will be traveling. On a "normal" night (with no delays) don't expect to walk into your house on Thursday any earlier than about 9:30pm and if you're delayed and don't get in until 2:00am, you still have to be at your 8:00am meetings! (And forget about lunch breaks on Fridays.. your schedule will be booked solid all day.) -The managment structure is a joke. You often have a 23 yr-old TL who's been there a year "supervising" someone who's been there longer and sometimes 10 years older than them. Good feedback is few and far between and quite superficial. The only thing anyone is focusing on is what you're doing wrong. (Or not how someone who matters would do it.) -They say they never fire anyone. They do it all the time. Just in a passive aggressive way and then call it a mutual agreement. Sometimes its because a customer complains but its usually if your TL doesn't like you or if you don't conform to their way of thinking or doing things. -New hires are brainwashed into believing it's the best software available. It's not. There is a lot of needed functionality but they are so busy working on the big bells and whistles to gets the sale that they have overlooked a lot of the basic things that are needed. Then implementers are left to answer all the "Why can't it do this?" questions. -Developers and TS do not like IS coming to them with needed functionality. You will get a condescending response by someone who has never set foot into a hospital and has no clue why the customer is asking. Then again, IS gets to go back and deliver the good news to the customer. -The non-compete is ridiculous and will leave you unemployeed and uninsured when you leave. It is for a full year and you cannot work for competitors (understandable,) clients or consult. Unless you change industries, or don't care about screwing over a new employer to hire you for a few months, you're pretty much left hung out to dry. (And they don't care one bit what happens to you once you're gone.) -You are required to live within 50 miles of Madison, even when you're traveling all the time. Madison is great for new grads but is horrible for people in their 30's. It's ok in the summer because there are things to do outside. But other than the Children's Museum, there is nothing to do for families. -Madison is very liberal and strange.... no one should be required to live there against their will.
