"Take care of the associates, and they'll take care of our customers" - feel-good B.S.
Pros
The company is worldwide, with much opportunity for internal development, promotion, training, and transfer-- if you're willing to stick around and deal with all the "cons", that is.
Cons
Salaried associates are shamelessly exploited-- if a manager/supervisor can be forced to do the work of an hourly associate (or two) on top of their own, you can expect it will become the norm sooner or later. Trimming the fat is one thing, but Marriott will trim the meat and bone at the slightest budgetary shortfall, and never allow it to heal. Meanwhile, hourly associates are not compensated fairly for their hard work. Wages are determined by local market wage surveys-- but most, if not all, of the properties surveyed are apt to be Marriott, as well, in a convenient catch-22. The bottom line is, positions are not compensated as well as their counterparts in other companies-- though this is true for Hospitality in general. Corporate S.O.P. and the short-term bottom line trump all logic and nuance of property- or department- level decision-making. Local management cares more about looking good to Top Brass and making their numbers by any means necessary than truly making wise long-term decisions for the customers, associates, or company.
