Pros
As a software developer, you are always directly involved in influencing end products. You make a new feature or update something, it's tested, it gets released. The schedule is flexible. As long as you meet minimum working hours, they don't care what times you come in to work. The people I worked with (except senior management) were all very friendly, supportive, professional, and knowledgeable. No dress code. You don't have to wear a suit, which is nice. I could go to work in jeans and a tshirt. The business is growing, and often hiring. Easy to get a job if you're qualified.
Cons
Senior management believes in an 'I can do no wrong' approach. On one day, we had a meeting where we were warned "do not make changes to products simply because YOU think it's a good idea - make sure you have good reasons." Sure, that makes sense. But then literally one hour later, we had a design meeting for the project I was working on, and I was told "I think we should totally change this up, because I don't like it the way it is." When I tried to point out we'd been researching and developing the current design for months, I was told he was the boss and therefore I had to do what he said. They track every single move you make. On every computer, there is a program installed that tracks keystrokes, takes a screenshot every five minutes, and another screenshot every time you open a new window, and counts mouse clicks. If you don't press a key or click the mouse at least once per minute, it logs that you have gone "idle". It was extremely off-putting that I could not google something without senior management potentially being aware of it, and I could not take a five-minute break without my computer logging it. This was even worse because sometimes I would genuinely be working, but not at my computer. For example, in a meeting. There is little community feel. When I worked there, there was a 'kitchen' facility. It had a microwave, and a fridge. There was no space to sit and relax, or communicate with co-workers. You literally had to converse while sitting at your desk, or standing in a corridor. There was nowhere else to go. Lunchtime is set to be half an hour as standard. When I started working there, I was unaware of this rule, but was soon informed: "Your lunch hour is half an hour." As such, my agreement to work 9-5 days was obviously thrown out the window. I either had to work 9-5:30, skip half the lunch hour I expected, or eat at my desk while I worked. Most people chose to work and eat at the same time. The high turnover rate reflects how difficult it is to work there. There are a few employees who have worked there for longer, but even they admit dealing with senior management is difficult. The advice I was given was "just do what he says and once he's satisfied you can fix it."
