Pros
Some very talented people to work with!! Absolutely solid business model and great methodological approach to the business.
Cons
The company extensive new hires program alone isnt enough if you dont have support and guidance from your direct manager. I personally didnt have much guidance from the 2 different direct managers I had. Company culture seems to be that you ought to learn how to swim quickly and alone. This could be tricky if you come from another business environment and take on a position Senior position of responsability because Booking.com has a very unique way of doing business. As I got on board, for the first quarter I focused 100% on my team achieving my target (I was in a Senior commercial position) later on somebody confessed me that your performance is not just related to target achievement... you need to find your way to ADD something else in. I may agree, but one needs more than 1 or 2 quarters to do that if you dont have appropriate guidance and your manager is not supposed to be just there controlling and evaluating your job, should also give you the support you need. It seemed to me that failure to engage into internal politics may be lethal. Regrettably (and I say regrettably because I wouldnt expect from a company as Booking.com) if you are in the graces of your manager you can do your job normally and sleep tight, your reviews will likely be in your favour. Should this not be the situation, well then... you have no more then 1 or 2 quarters left. Consideration of other people (and not only strickly about your job) seemed to be very important and HIGHLY VALUED when deciding an appraisal result. Must DOs: go to parties, engage with people and win the graces of your colleagues in any department as they are going to decided over your future in the company.
