Great vision, absolute chaos - Senior Software Engineer Autodesk Employee Review

1.0
Oct 13, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

In words, the company has a great vision, and is committed to the cause of making the world a better place. Very inspirational.

Cons

In practice, it's absolute chaos. Most teams are results of acquisitions, and they end up being poorly integrated silos with an excessive amount of unskilled, inexperienced managers that were promoted as a result of acquisition and not true merit or skill. Tons of overinflated egos run wild, boasting the success of their ol' startup, and amidst this absolutely zero forward progress is made. Most people that last longer than a few months in Autodesk carry a title of "principal" engineer and yet have trouble with basic daily tasks such as version control or testing, being well below average even for junior level in other places. The reseach division (OCTO) is possibly worse, with principal researchers having difficulty explaining their thoughts clearly or relating their work to others. I do not recommend this company for anyone who aspires to learn from peers.

Explore other reviews about Autodesk

5.0
Jun 1, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good WLB Low Turnover Rates Interesting Projects/Work Full Benefits + 401k

Cons

Medium Pay, Not Amazing Stock Packages

2.0
Jun 12, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The individual contributors, your peers you work with day in and day out are fantastic people! At the IC level, for the most part, it feels like everyone is in the fight together. The work/life balance is good depending on which business unit/team you're aligned with. The benefits are pretty solid, especially the 6 week sabbatical.

Cons

Autodesk moves at the pace of a snail, very slow to take action on anything. Selling is very difficult with all the undocumented approvals, processes, red tape and very few people are willing to actually help! Leadership doesn't care about the people their decisions impact. Feedback is rarely listened to and acted upon. Pay is terrible compared to competitors in this space. Autodesk has embraced a ton of change over the last few years with new marketing, sales and IT leadership and it shows. They are not shy in showing their desire to be the next Oracle at the expense of their people. They are constantly changing tools, processes, people, roles, you name it so you feel like you're under water constantly. Lipstick on a pig.

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