I concur on the lackey mentality. Those who are close to the senior management have opportunities, the rest just languish on the sidelines. Good if you're not ambitious and just want to collect a paycheck. If you start your career or join mid career into this kind of company, you will lose a lot of your technical skills, you will become a shadow operator or one who is good at playing politics.

Avoid at all costs unless you are part of mid/senior management