There are still reasons to stay, but company culture has changed
Pros
- Work life balance is still a major pro, though this depends on team. At least in my org, there's no expectation to work over 40 hours and managers are flexible with time off - Generally you will work with very nice, reasonable, and smart people - As a BA, you'll have the opportunity to learn SQL, Python and other data analysis tools. You can build a great skillset and foundational knowledge. Your manager is usually also a skilled analyst who can help you grow. We use Snowflake, which is nice. - Easy to transition between roles, teams and job families. If you want to make a change, you can usually do that within Capital One and your team will be supportive. (This can be a double edged sword)
Cons
- Company culture has changed a lot over the past year or so. Management has done a series of "quiet layoffs" over the past year, as well as a massive uptick in performance improvement plans and other "performance-related" exits. This has undermined employee morale and there's a general lack of security among employees. Performance management is already a stressful process, and this has taken things up a notch. - The other side of employee mobility within the company is constant re-orgs. In 3 years, I've had 3 different direct managers and 3 different SKIP level managers, all moving at different times. You really need managers to champion you through performance management, so this puts you at a disadvantage for promotions, etc. - Business Analysis job family is still very much a boys club, which tends to be reflected in performance decisions. - Within a big company, in a heavily regulated industry with a lot of red tape, it can be difficult to achieve results. This leads to performance decisions being made on more subjective and vague criteria, which can be difficult to improve on, and creates room for bias. Overall, performance management is a time-consuming, ineffective and stressful process.