Pros
Brand name recognition will help you find another job once it dawns on you that you won't be treated like an indentured servant at comparable firms.
Cons
Managers do not care about you, your career growth, your professional development, etc. They will certainly tell you they do and pay lip service to that effect all the time, particularly those MD's and ED's that have no idea who you are, what you do, etc. But in reality, you're just a barcode to these people; you must understand that going in. I work in compliance, specifically AML, and I have to say that joining this firm was the biggest mistake I have made to date. The attrition rate here is so high that I've had 4 managers in as many months. Because the firm rarely hires and promotes from within, most of the new managers need to be trained by their subordinates. This is unacceptable, illogical, etc. Compensation is another issue altogether. You will be paid under market - way under market in fact. My bonus this year was less than a month's paycheck (and I fared well considering many folks got nothing). To add insult to injury, salary increases did not exceed 2.0% for most of my colleagues, and the majority reported 1.5% increases. This is municipal government quality compensation - not compensation for people in financial services. Most of us can literally no longer afford to work here and live in New York.
