Pros
Durham is actually an interesting place to live. Duke is a major employer in the area, so if you want to live in Durham, Duke is an option. The campus, chapel, gardens are beautiful and the software developers with whom I work are good, solid people. Knowing that you're a part of an organization that saves lives and does such remarkable research is also quite motivating.
Kontras
I was whole-heartedly loyal to Duke for the first 5 years. I loved it; enjoyed the creative work, respected my colleagues, and was proud to be part of a world-class organization. It started changing around 2002 when the environment gradually became cold and distrustful. Employees began to feel disrespected and became notably less enthusiastic . Moral dropped when the team moved into a cold, corporate office building where upper mgt took the top floor and redecorated lavishly, putting workers in cubes and doubled up in plastic walled, window-less offices. Puzzling decision by upper management. Million dollar investments are made buying astonishingly poor software systems, despite recommendations from committees who investigated alternatives. Not only is there a lack of vision/inspiration from the leaders, but their actions and comments indicate that vision/inspiration is not valued. For most groups, progressive concepts are not considered (though there are some exceptions - a few good groups - mostly in the School of Medicine). It's sad - like watching someone you love decline in health.