Pros
The upper upper management-- in Philly- knows how to run a business. Comcast is no-nonsense: they intend to make money and see that the employees share in the rewards to a reasonable degree. Best quality is it has risen rapidly enough that it still has a small-company, family-business mind-set even though it has mushroomed into a giant corporation. Brian Roberts, son of legendary founder, Ralph Roberts, runs it, and his top man is Steve Burke. Both are superb leaders and businessmen. Their business philosophy has been company decentralization, with the various systems and regional divisions across the country left to figure out their own approach to a significant degree. This has slowed down bureaucratization and sameness, and has fostered a relative of diversity styles and approaches. The benefit for the employee is a relative lack of stifling generalities rolling mindlessly down from a peak populated by a bland egocentric corporate kingpin. There is something still amateurish , naive, and sincere about the company, stemming from its closeness to its roots, its Philly-spirit, the inspiring story of its founding fathers, and its talented and well-intentioned leaders, that is endearing and really works.
Cons
In growing and becoming so successful by practicing and embodying all the Pro's described above, Comcast is increasingly acquiring the absurdities of all large bureaucracies -- the useless layering of management being the most notable one. Supervisors don't 'have time to supervise, coach, or lead their people, because they have to be performing endless chores for, and being present in non-stop conference calls with, middle layer management. They do this,presumably, so their managers, in turn, can carry out the things the people they report task them with. The people most out of touch with reality in this arrangement are at the top, while those most in touch are at the bottom. The hierarchy is structured to ensure everyone from the top down focuses on the needs and imperatives of the person above him. Thus, the management ensure that its needs are placed ahead of those of the customers. (Comcast may not be alone in this faulty deployment of resources.) Comcast does not realize it has decimated its supervisory core with this ineffective from-the-top-down management strategy. It wonders why it continues to have difficulties with customer satisfaction, when it has much to do with the fact that the employees are not supervised. The supervisors are all away at meetings, learning more and more about managing. For Comcast to provide top-notch service, the management needs to be largely dispensed with, so the supervisors can be with their people, coaching them more and more on how to succeed in their job.
