Pros
I started my 7 year career at ERA as the Program Manager, managing day to day accelerator operations and finished as an Operating Partner. Jon and Murat were always my number one advocates, and championed me through many challenges there - supporting my growth, giving me room to dictate and grow operations as I saw fit, managing my work independently and always empowering me. It was a special place, and the community of founders, mentors and other ERA team members we built together is reflective of the integrity and passion they exemplify for helping founders. If you want to learn first hand how to build a company in the earliest stages, and understand the world of seed investing - there is nowhere better. They are real, good people. 4 years later I still have great relationships with the partners and many others. It's a great place to work if you are a self-starter and like to be challenged all the time with new problems, companies, founders and ideas. If you work here in an operations role, you will be happy and successful if you derive energy and satisfaction from helping founders in any way and are driven to figure out how you can help them.
Cons
I don't think of ERA as having 'cons' in a traditional sense. It all depends on who you are and what you're looking for in a job. I'm assuming it's a given that you're looking for exposure to early stage startups, investing and helping founders. Setting that aside - it's a high energy and fast-paced environment that requires flexibility, adaptation, quick problem solving and a lot of vigor, especially if you're in an operations role. You'll need to be passionate about building relationships and an extreme extrovert. You’ll interface with hundreds of people on a weekly basis, attending events, etc. If that sounds exciting to you, it will be a great place. If not, it won’t be a good fit. I had to give WL balance 4 stars :) It is a demanding place but that is a given, after all you're in the epicenter of early stage tech in NYC! I was happy to work hard because I was passionate about everything we did. The whole team is, especially the partners, so it's imperative you are not phased by this if you're considering working here. All that said, I was able to take time off whenever I needed, I enjoyed my vacations and was disconnected, and the partners never intruded on what I needed personally. They were great to me when I had my first son and had really excellent maternity leave.