Good snacks can’t save poor Apps org - Software Applications Engineer Workday Employee Review

1.0
Sep 4, 2020
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Snacks 401k matching (with after tax 401k contributions allowed)

Cons

I don’t think it’s possible to deny that Workday has some positive attributes. I’m sure some people can go through their career there without a hitch. But I think I can safely say that if you want a great software engineering career, you need to do much better than working in the apps org at Workday. I think joining the Apps was the biggest mistake in my entire life, setting me back years in my professional development. And it’s not just working in XpressO. At the end of my tenure I came to appreciate the things it did well. It’s more the lack of insight into any part of the technical stack, and the subpar technical leadership in Apps. Almost every manager I had during my tenure were Peoplesoft->Oracle->Workday, so several years away from the technical cutting edge. The lack of almost any technical know-how forces nonsense metrics to be the measure of an engineers ability, such as number of commits in a month, or how many comments were posted on a code review. Issues with my manager disappeared when I started committing near blank code to keep my number up, and started telling my peers to give me comments on my code reviews directly instead of on the code review tool. And I know for a fact it’s not just me who dealt with this. Workday appears to hire three types of people in apps: college students who don’t know any better, older folk who don’t care anymore about being on the bleeding edge and just want a stable 9-5, and managers who worked at Peoplesoft at some point. Not exactly the ideal combination for what should be a high performance team.

Explore other reviews about Workday

5.0
May 20, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Workday is a truly values-driven company, and you can feel it every day. We’re in the middle of an exciting transformation to drive more innovation and speed, and while that has meant making some tough decisions, those decisions are always grounded in our core values. Employees and customers are consistently kept at the center, and there’s a real sense that doing what’s right guides how we operate and where we’re going as a company.

Cons

Decision-making can sometimes feel slow and unclear, as it’s not always obvious who has true ownership or final say. In a few areas, especially HR, leadership can feel more oriented around selling and positioning our products than around deep, hands-on practitioner experience, which occasionally creates a gap between strategy and the day-to-day needs of employees and managers.

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Workday Response
1mo
Thank you for your feedback. We are proud of our culture and the success that we have achieved because of the hard work and dedication of our Workmates. Thanks for your contributions, your transparency, and for being an integral part of the Workday team during your time here.
3.0
Jun 29, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Excellent engineering talent and knowledgeable coworkers. Strong engineering culture with high code quality standards. Modern technology stack and opportunities to work on large-scale enterprise software. Good work-life balance compared to many tech companies. Competitive compensation, benefits, and employee perks. Collaborative environment with supportive teammates. Opportunities to learn new technologies and grow technically. Stable development processes and mature SDLC practices. Strong emphasis on testing, code reviews, and software quality. Flexible work arrangements (depending on team).

Cons

Large organization means decision-making can be slow. Significant amount of process and bureaucracy before changes reach production. Cross-team dependencies can slow delivery. Career growth can depend on organizational priorities and manager support. Frequent reorganizations can shift priorities and disrupt long-term projects. Innovation may move slower than at smaller startups. Internal tools and processes can sometimes feel overly complex. Communication between teams can occasionally be inconsistent. Like much of the tech industry, the company has experienced layoffs, creating uncertainty for some employees. Promotions can take time and require navigating multiple approval levels.

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Workday Response
22h
Thank you for your thoughtful review. We're aware that there's always room to grow, but at Workday, we take pride in our dedication to our Workmates and the 'employee first' ethos we've embedded since day one. We value your feedback as well as the praise you have provided in your review.
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