Pros
Salaries can be good, at least downtown, and if you get placed in the right department at the right time and are a performer, upward mobility can be excellent. The 401k is good (instant vesting), and the stock purchase plan is a nice benefit. If the economy is rising and you get placed in a good department, it can be a good short term resume builder.
Cons
Standard large corporation. There is no consistency in vision or direction. Every standard is put in place not to help employees, customers or shareholders, but to give management a box to check and an easy way to blame who they choose if there's a problem, since the whole company is forced to cut corners constantly. Teams have lots of "retro" meetings where everyone is told to own their mistakes and that we all work to the same standard. When anything goes wrong because of leadership, that discussion is off the table. Again, management does not mind this, because it keeps everyone afraid enough of termination that they keep showing up, looking busy, and working very hard when the boss is looking. The end result is an office full of jaded employees who spend a lot of time in their cubicle but get very little productive work done. It depends on the department and manager, but often, the only thing that decides who has to care is politics. The office environment is chaotic and distracting, to the point that it's hard to focus on anything, but management wants the office as packed as possible. There's a cult-like culture. Management will spend money on underwhelming and forced "culture/team building" events even when contractors and employees are being dismissed in droves. EVERYTHING is just a box to check. Fifth Third will hire masses of contractors and employees during economic upswings and then cut most of them later in the fiscal year just to pad the budget and stock price. Do not be fooled by the "ethical company" awards they win. It's all performative.
