Pros
* Generous pay (for nonprofit), benefits and professional development. * Good work/life balance. Very few employees stay even 30 minutes past 5 p.m. Consequently turn-over is low and many loyal employees never leave...for better and for worse. * The Society's mission and ability to make a difference. * Ideal work environment for those with a "go with the flow" (vs. "go getter") attitude, who value process and rules over results, are male and/or mechanical engineers.
Cons
* Too many meetings for meeting sake. * Mastery of playing politics is rewarded over mastery of one's discipline area and job effectiveness. * Expertise is not appreciated. Group think rules. Too many projects are built and managed by committee so ultimately no ONE ever takes responsibility or is blamed, publicly anyway. * The CYA culture. ASME is a "good old boys" network with lots of cronyism and relatively few non-ME women high-level execs. Cronyism starts at the top, with a misogynistic and paranoid ED.