Pros
-Some of the brightest minds in the business, especially on the science side -People are generally pretty nice -Great benefits and perks -Strong brand name with an excellent reputation -One of the best pipelines in the industry -Genentech generally treats employees well and respects their work -Fairy strong senior leaders
Kontras
-Opaque promotion process. Although people are encouraged to voice their opinions, there is a subtle and unspoken mantra that you have to conform to the Genentech way of doing things. In the commercial organization it helps if you were in a fraternity or sorority. -Lot of lateral movements needed to get a breath of experience as roles are specialized. -Lot of your success at Genentech depends on your relationship with your manager and not necessarily the quality of your work. Heavy premium placed on how well you navigate the "informal network" of insiders within the organization. -"The Past Does Not Equal to the Future". Genentech's past success and leadership, especially in the cancer therapeutics area, had lulled it into a false sense of security and a feeling that they will continue to "own" that market. Only now are they realizing that other more nimble companies unencumbered by their legacy are beating them when it comes to innovation and new standards of care. -Roche processes are stifling and detracting from value added work.