Vantaggi
1. Money & benefits. (although I hear bonuses are significantly smaller since I left) 2. Interesting work and smart people. MS is one of the top i-banks in the world. They hire the best talent and the work is interesting (if you like finance.) The people in general are good to work with. 3. Flexible work life. Maternity leave is great for working mothers, working from home is common for back office / IT / support types when needed. 4. Great alumni network. Ms does a great job at keeping connected to you even after you leave. 5. Lateral transitions. I have seen people successfully move internally from back to front office roles.
Svantaggi
1. Too stingy with promotions. I was promised a senior promotion two years in a row and both times got B.S. excuses for why it would not happen. The first was that I didn't have enough years of experience (i.e. I was too young.) The second was that I didn't have enough connections (in reality my management just failed to push hard enough for me in the process.) If you want a VP, ED, or MD title, you need to come in at that level when you first join, else don't count on getting it. 2. Long work hours. You can work from home and take time off when needed, but people usually work 10-12 hours a day. If you're in the back office or IT, you're likely working with people in NY, London, and Tokyo / HK so your day never really ends. I would start at 7 AM to meet with people in Europe and have calls the same night at 8 PM with Tokyo or HK. People work long hours there. 3. Compensation trending down. Top performers still make good money, but overall people are seeing their bonuses shrink or cut entirely. 4. Becoming a behemoth. With the merger with Smith Barney, MS is starting to look like another massive blob of a bank like Citi, JPMC, or BofA. They're losing their i-banking and S&T focus which is what made MS such a fun and lucrative place to work. If that's your interest, your better off at a hedge fund or Goldman.