Pros

New graduates /hires have opportunities to contribute right away. You are able to work with people in other departments and management has a pretty good open door policy. The work/life balance is good but there are some people who have been working here way too long and are way too comfortable. The benefits are good and in line with our competitors. There are free sodas everyday, free bagels on wednesdays, and a once a month company lunch. There are team building activities like company sponsored bowling outings. While these outings are generally fun, some have expressed privately that these events seem a little forced as they have only recently started doing these since the new managing director was hired.

Cons

There are less than 100 people in our division so there isn't much room for professional growth and the structure here does not allow you to move from one department to another. The technology is pretty old and there are too many programmers that have been here way too long without updating there skills. Many of the managers are lifers who got promoted because of they've been here for a long time. These managers have great inidividual skills (technical, etc) but they do not have any business training and / or people skills to manage a team or other individuals. Many managers are so busy with their individual projects that they do not spend enough time developing people. They really should look into to hiring outside talent if they want to keep the product and company competitive. While I think overal the culture of the company is good, some of us hope that the new managing director will shake things up get us back to being entrepreneural and innovative.

Advice to Senior Management

Evaluate talent and promote those that are ready to lead and manage, not just those that are skilled in their jobs and have been working here for a while
Look to outside to hire managers.
Have each department be more accountable. Who's responsible for catching all the bugs before a release?