Vantaggi
I went through the MIT (Manager in Training) program to become an ASM at Kohl's in charge of Children, Footwear and Home. While I had a great time at my training store and during the 12-weeks of freedom (i.e. not salaried) I had a good work-life balance. The pay is fair for the field and benefits are decent. Also you accumulate vacation at a pretty fast rate.
Svantaggi
Expect 10-12 hour days on a regular basis, and during "visit mode (when higher ups announce that they will be visiting your store soon)," don't expect to go home without putting in back-to-back 16 hour days, often for 3-4 days straight. Also, you're SUPPOSED to have every other weekend off, but in reality, it doesn't always happen and you are asked to be "flexible." The "Yes we can" policy is incredibly annoying and not well thought out. Customers are constantly taking advantage and abusing the policy and you are completely powerless to stop it due to the incredibly unsustainable policy that corporate has in place. To top it off, those same customers who are ripping you off are rude and insulting. From the end of November until Jan. 1st, you must work 6-days-a-week, often for 10-12 hours a day. That's a 72-hour workweek, and Kohl's wants to advertise "work-life balance" as part of their recruiting message. And on top of all this, there is absolutely NO payroll in the store to do any of the things you are supposed to accomplish. Try to run an 88,000 square foot building with 6 people -including yourself- as customers are tearing your store apart and crying about the messy store (that they created) and the long lines. Burn-out will occur faster than you can utter the words "I need a new job."