Pros
Most of the client facing associates work very very hard to deliver a consistently high quality service to clients. It’s for the most part a highly professional environment and business is placed in the right way (i.e. there are no dubious incentives to move business to one particular market etc). There are many good internal resources and talented people in other teams, but each department is so cut off from each other that it can take time to identify that, but when you do find them it's great. It’s a good place to be if you have the skills and knowledge to jump straight into the busy work environment, and promotion prospects are good. Some of the management are very talented, dedicated people. Very good with charity and wider community support if that's your thing and the training opportunities (well organised centrally by HR) are fantastic. Great social scene, and many opportunities to get out and about with clients, underwriters etc, regardless of your level of experience.
Cons
Way too much micro management, more trust of the (for the most part) very talented associates is needed. Some nasty office politics from some (but not all) management. Working my notice was not a pleasurable experience. A lot of 'deadwood' in senior management, who are paid a fortune for doing not very much, but the talented middle management don't dare make a noise for fear of hurting their own promotion chances. It is expected of you to work long hours or take work home to get everything done, and this is seen as the norm and perfectly acceptable on a daily basis. Work / Life balance is poor and new staff are only brought in when existing teams are at absolute breaking point. Insane bureaucracy that's incredibly outdated. MRC slips and cover notes for policies that are a couple of hundred quid is just bonkers and wastes so much time. Some (but not all) of the systems are very outdated, and it has woefully poor IT generally for such a large company. Training is poor for new starters because no one has the time to do it. It's not a good place to start an insurance or broking career. You're won't be employed if you're a married woman at or near child bearing age. How this happens in 2014 I have no idea. More diversity is definitely needed.