Worst job I've ever had. - Software Engineering Garmin Employee Review

1.0
May 10, 2012
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Decent health care package, but you'll need it to to deal with the stress of working at Garmin. Some fairly competent co-workers, but their best efforts are squandered by management.

Cons

Upper management lacks strategic vision. Case in point is the Garmin smartphone debacle. Management can't decide what product strategy to pursue, so they demand that engineering work on all possible combinations, and then they complain when it doesn't come together on time. Middle management is populated by people who have no clue how to manage people, much less show any leadership traits. Work at Garmin degenerates into a rat race of competing with your fellow co-worker for projects, appreciation, promotions, and ultimately your salary. Favoritism is rampant, and promotions and project assignments are mostly based on the buddy system. Young recruits straight from college are favored over experienced professionals, as they don't seem to realize how horrible things have become at Garmin.

Explore other reviews about Garmin

5.0
May 30, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great work/life balance. Top pay if you're a top performer.

Cons

Can get boring with little opportunity to learn new things.

3.0
Apr 3, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good benefits and work life balance. It's a good culture and I've never worked at a place where your immediate peers are this helpful and pleasant to work with, even across teams and offices. If you want to just come in and do just what is required for your job and go home with the knowledge you have a stable job, this is the perfect place to work. I'd only recommend working here if you just want a job, but don't care about a career.

Cons

There is poor career advancement, especially if you aren't male. Leadership does not care about leading people. The RTO has made working here less appealing. The excuse that you can't collaborate unless you are in the same building makes no sense when you work with people in 6 different countries. It is about control and appearances, all due to incredibly poor senior leadership strategies. The pay is also low and so is the quality of the software you work on. Leadership likes to talk quality, but they like fast and cheap. They will not support you in actual software quality nor implement changes to improve it. The same issues happen over and over without improvement.

8
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