The worst career choice I've ever made - BEWARE of this place - Software Developer Agoda Employee Review

1.0
Mar 15, 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I like tropical weather, and Bangkok is a great city

Cons

Agoda is claiming to be lean and agile - what a joke! That's just for marketing purposes and to attract talents. In fact, Agoda is loosing a lot of good and talented Backend people (and booking) every month. Why? This is hell wrapped up in a shiny cellophane. The working environment is just pathetic - huge technical debt, no collaboration between teams, no visibility what-so-ever of what's going on, daily production escalations, bureaucracy and bad management practices. Everyone's little interests are their own KPIs. Product management is basically owning Backend team and development, while Backend management is weak and almost dis-functional. Guess who made sure the current and previous technical management is so weak? Dev management is absent, as they sit all day in meetings and are occupied with sending emails. That means it's all about product, features and micro management. So boring! Nobody makes any architectural decisions and there's a huge technical debt that slows development and created a LOT of frustration. Developers don't really have access to technologies (kafka, cassandra, ...) - if you need something, just send an email and wait... Things that should take days takes weeks. Does any of those sound like lean?! This code-monkeysism approach is a long tradition here. Developers are at the bottom of the food chain, and are being replaced yearly - others make sure they get the yearly bonuses at time! Developers - beware!

Explore other reviews about Agoda

5.0
Feb 13, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good experience with interesting work culture.

Cons

Pay was not competitive, benefits were not great.

4.0
Dec 11, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Global company with diverse cohort, will give you opportunities to learn, strength in data usage, Bangkok location, good overall business trajectory

Cons

Low pay for tech industry, work-life balance is poor, can feel stuck if your manager does not support your growth, dependency on PPT presentations

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