On-prem enterprise software is not a cool technology sector to be in.
Because of this perception the company does not attract the best talent anymore. Most of the A level players have left from the engineering ranks to startups or the FANG companies. So co-workers are mediocre at best.
Also the company moves at a glacial pace, compared to all the companies working in the cloud - releases in VMware take months to a year.
Its anachronistic in this day and age to have a monolithic technology stack. But with such a large installed base it will be near impossible for the company to pivot.
Due to all of the above constraints it is hard to get excited about the technology in the company.
A lot of the upper management are from the traditional old companies like Cisco, HP and IBM. This does not inspire confidence in the middle management.
The company pays well on the salary and bonus front but the RSU's are significantly lower than what FANG pays.
Bottom line VMware is no longer a premium destination for employees. Its more in the same league as a Cisco or Oracle. A tier 3 company at best.
Go there if you are looking for a stable company and great WLB.