Pros
- benefits are good - 401k match and immediate vesting - flexibility if you have kids They try to be employee conscious, very sensitive to employee's perception of the "culture." If you pick the right path, you don't have to work too hard and will still get praised.
Cons
- Pay is average. Bonuses are based almost exclusively on how the business performed (decided by Mars family). - big lack of accountability, most are afraid to take risks or make mistakes so quick decisions are hard to come by unless there is a fire to be put out. - 5 principles are applied in a selective manner, but are printed everywhere. - This is a private company but it may as well be public. - Cash is king. They will cut corners wherever possible to ensure bottom line is as lean as can be. This includes under-staffing and screwing over external business partners. - Perception, not performance, is everything (hard to control since open office environment allows for a lot of quick judgment). - Trust is hard to come by The flat hierarchy helps younger staff feel important but that doesn't mean everyone is seen as a partner. There are still decision makers who have those in a lower tier "figure out" how to make those decisions come to fruition - the accountability for failure will normally fall on those further down the chain. Don't think the "Mars" name on your resume will help much externally. The culture is viewed in a pretty negative light by those outside of the business as people who love it will stay (hence why few outside of Mars has a positive outlook)