Pros
1) 36.25 hour workweek. (Some parts of State Street work 40-hour weeks. YMMV..) Also, my part of State Street was flexible with respect to start time, stop time, etc. and some employees chose to work 9 long days and take the 10th day off. 2) Minimal pressure to work overtime. (In my area, the senior people - several levels above me - worked weekends when necessary, but didn't ask lower-level employees to do it.) 3) The ability to purchase up to an additional week of vacation (up to 5 days). (You don't get this until the January after you start working at State Street.) You can also sell up to a week. (The current vacation policy is: 2 weeks the first year, 3 weeks the 3rd year, and something like 15 years or promotion to Officer before you get 4 weeks. Also, vacation is prorated the year when you enter or leave the company. The week you buy would be on top of this policy.) 4) A strong culture of volunteerism. After 6 months, you can take 2 days a year for State Street-approved volunteer events at local charities and not have it count against your vacation. This was a lot of fun, with great events. 5) People do generally work together to get the job done. 6) Senior management attempts to stay in the loop with employees via quarterly town hall meetings where employee questions are taken and answered.
Cons
1) Low pay compared to other financial service companies, and minimal raises. 2) Minimal training. Years ago they offered in-house classroom training, but now it's mostly online. 3) General cost-cutting culture. IT projects are offshored if possible. There was a deep layoff in late 2008/early 2009 and benefits are kept competitive but no more than that, especially if the benefit costs money. LEAN (a process improvement methodology) was introduced recently. Employees acquired from other companies are put on State Street level benefits, which can be perceived as cuts (less vacation, for example). 4) Small cubicles - 6' by 7' by 3.5' tall. Depending on your job/area and what you do, this can be problematic. Privacy is minimal. 5) You must pay $2 most Fridays if you choose to wear jeans - profits go to charity. 6) Not a lot of career advancement -- you tend to do the same low-level things day after day and you have to push yourself to investigate other areas or learn about other areas. Promotions only come after many years of work.