Pros
Great front line people to work with. These are the people that actually enjoy coming to work and helping others figure out this crazy technical world.
Cons
The inexperience of front line management is disappointing. The fast growth of the company is what has facilitated the buddy hiring system. They let those with no management experience, training or business knowledge have control over other peoples lives and careers. I will admit that they give the training after the fact. I would at least think there should be created some sort of assistant team lead position before letting someone else manage a person's future. What is even more disappointing is the senior managers making these sort of hiring decisions. When approached the senior managers are not able to provide anymore of an explanation of gut feeling on multiple occasions.