Pros
Ok pay, can have flexible work schedule, in some places management is non existent so you can do work and not be micro managed. There are in fact lots of chances to learn knew things and gain experience if you are willing to put in the time and effort and volunteer.
Cons
Upper management has zero idea how department's are functioning. Pay is lower that it should be for some employees, and some employees simply work more and harder than others. It is a place where, for some, you can hide and not do much work and collect your paycheck. Pay can be low especially for woman. Despite women being in positions of power at the university there is still an attitude of women can be paid less coming from an increasingly corporate style HR department. HR is out of touch with what happens at the university. You can be micro managed to death by HR or your direct supervisor, but conversely Harvard has a hard time providing adequate resources or supervision via upper management. Basically all middle managers are thrown into sink or swim. And the lower staff either have to work hard or hide out.