Your manager determines your success at VMware
Pros
Your career journey/success at VMware will be defined by your manager. Work/Life Balance, Upward Mobility, Cross Training or any career advancement is only existent if you have a manager and leadership team that will advocate on behalf of you and celebrate your accomplishments. Advocating on behalf of yourself only goes so far when BU management has their favorites. EPIC Values is a joke and no one is actually held accountable to them. Vmware doesn't have a formal review process which is problematic because your manager is not obligated to communicate in a constructive way room for improvement/celebrate achievements. VMware has a LOT of work to do to actually give the representation they strive for outsiders to perceive. Lots of senior leaders that only employ people brought over from their previous companies with aged experience which ultimately stunts innovation and creativity. Younger employees are perceived as inexperienced and lacking knowledge. Someone has to either die or leave the company for you to be promoted. Sad because there are actual employees that are invested in the organization but don't have to the opportunity to innovate and make a change. And internal transfers are a joke - an external hire will be given the opportunity first, every time. So much for a "career journey" within the company. This is contributed to the fact that 90% of the recruiters at VMware are contractors and are not invested in the company and could care less about the candidate recruiting experience, even with an employee referral. Pros: Unlimited PTO Generous Paternity Leave Professional Development Opportunities Lots of company/family-friendly events for Palo Alto employees Exposure to a variety of technologies
Cons
Lackluster and Mediocre Leadership No Upward Mobility unless you're a management "favorite" Terrible HR and Recruiting for External and Internal Candidates