Pros
Nice People Brand Recognition You are not micromanaged, management is hands off as long as you reach your numbers
Cons
It's all a numbers game, with the employees as well as prospective clients. In regards to employees, instead of focusing on quality, management hires Financial Advisor Associates (those entering the firm without an existing book) in high numbers and then weeds out nearly all -- including the most talented. Very high risk job regardless of the strength of your background. Promises of upside compensation are not realistic for 5 - 7 years in the business. Expect to make next to nothing after your 18 months of salary is up (Literally $30K - $50K). Stress level associated with the job is incredibly high regardless of who you are, my entire class felt this way. Extremely high turnover. A lot is luck, I literally saw one person stay on when he didn't make his numbers for an entire year and then another person lost his job in the first 3 months and he had just barely missed his numbers (it's all based on the company's timing, you never know when they are going to do mass cuts).