Pros
Booz Allen tends to have a good reputation among clients and I think it will be a good reference to have on a resume. That said, I believe that that reputation is not the "gold standard" it has been in the past. There are opportunities for professional development IF you have the time to partake of them (which most do not given the heavy workload). Benefits are competitive.
Cons
The reputation is, as stated above, becoming less stellar than in the past. Advancement opportunities above the Associate level are either non-existant or meaningless. They have implemented a "new" level to get from Associate to Senior Associate now known as Lead Associate. There is little or no monetary incentive and just a lot more work. Like the new Vice-President position, it is seen as a stop gap to prevent advancement. The real monetary benefits are only available at the Senior Associate level which is next to impossible to attain. The workload is severe. Booz seems to be bidding work at 40 hour weeks but expecting 65-80 hours of performance. That might be acceptable if they recognized the additional time -- but they don't. Leadership stinks --- no communication, NO leadership assistance, No resolution of issues that require senior leadership involvement. Senior Associates are snobbish and do not communicate effectively with Associate levels and below. All the workload is at the Associate level and below with no balancing of responsiblities. There is an unwritten expectation that you will not say NO but unequal balancing of work among those in my group who seem to "get out of the hard projects" ...then walk around crooning that they have "nothing to do" while most others are working 70-80 hours a week. No quality of life and just an expectation that you will do more. The attrition rate is huge. They hire 5000 a year but the actual size of the staff only tends to increase by about 1200 per year. Recommendation: take the job if you have nothing else, don't expect to stay very long, expect no work/life balance, expect no real development or promotion opportunity (even with exceptional 360 degree ratings) and expect to be looking for another job within 2 years!
