Pros
Very stable company. State Farm does not have a history of layoffs. The company is a very family oriented atmosphere. They care about a work/life balance for all of their employees. Pay for some of the professional jobs is good. Support level employees earn a decent salary after they have been there a long time. Support can earn close to $50,000 without having a degree, although it takes quite a few years to reach this salary level. The company still has a pension plan and you are vested after 5 years. In addition to the pension plan, there is a match on the 401K plan up to $900 per year. They also put in $300 per year whether you participate in the 401K plan or not. Just recently added a Roth 401K to the plan. You have the option to contribute to one or both. They will match on both accounts.
Cons
Way too conservative of a company. There is a lot of management with old world thinking. What worked 20 years ago no longer works in this competitive environment. Low starting salaries make it difficult to compete for the best talent. If you have years of experience, you cannot walk in at the manager or director level, you have to start from scratch at the bottom of the salary range. Even if you are able to negotiate more than the minimum salary, you still make be making the same salary as someone who has been with the company 3-5 years when you may have 10 years experience in the industry. Due to this, it is difficult to attact those with experience at other companies who could bring fresh ideas and make a difference.