Pros
They have above average corporate facilities (cafeteria, open work space, fitness center, Starbucks) and benefits (education reimbursement, training, lodging discounts, health incentives). There is a genuine culture of employee appreciation (Associate Appreciation Week) and community engagement(Spirit to Serve day). My Marriott friends are the best, and I engage with them at every opportunity. Compensation was competitive, but the health plan was average/below average - I opted to get coverage through my wife's plan with Empire Blue Cross/Blue Shield. Opportunities to travel to interesting locations for business or brand development at various levels, such as staff auditors, etc.
Cons
While training and education discounts are offered, I found very little managerial support for advancement within or across functions. Networking is challenging in that there are many managerial layers to deal with. In my experience, only two people in my Information Resources (IT) department of 25 advanced to outside positions in 7 years, with only one going outside of IR. This particular group also spent a lot of time stepping over dollars to pick up dimes -in other words, they were more interested in creating processes to justify their existence than in delivering real value for end users in terms of ease of IT asset procurement and management. This is typical of many business support functions where Senior Directors are cowed by the SVP's to simply do as they're told. Recognition felt superficial and forced, and while some managers were capable of more, the default response to any service delivery issue was to kiss up and kick down. There is an uneven policy for flexible work arrangements, and that created a burden on those who are on site constantly putting out fires. The on-going organizational restructuring and outsourcing of Marriott's management services places a lot of stress on Associates who either leave for outside opportunities or grind it out while surrounded by increasing numbers of external vendors and consultants. They endure by escaping to the gym when the boss doesn't schedule a brown bag lunch meeting, or taking as many coffee breaks as they can.