Pros
-Excellent , Knowledgeable , Cooperative Colleagues
-Well established processes for operation and development
-Will get a chance to work with all the tools of the trade ( Lauterback Emulator, Lecroy/Xilinx protocol Analyzers, Perforce, Slickedit etc ) and learn industry standard storage protocols like SAS and SATA. ( PCIe too if you join SSD team )
- ESPP, 401k match, Health Care are good. Bonus is good during ( and only during) boom years.
-Good work Life Balance
Cons
-Very limited growth potential for new employees. You are looking at 4-5 years to get to the next level.
-Your immediate manager has very limited power and that shows when it comes to yearly reviews.Decisions regarding promotion taken at a higher level by people you might rarely interact.
-To get ahead you need to get "visibility". To get that you first need to be seen as good. But to be recognized as good you need to be in good projects. See where I am going with this !!!
-HDD business is always in a boom-bust cycle. One year you are making record profit margins. Next year you are talking about salary/ hiring freeze.
-I think the compensation ratio is not reflecting the actual reality.
-Weather is horrible during winter. But, summer and fall are nice.
