• Outdated Technology: Despite claims of modernisation, the focus remains on bug fixes with outdated technology, rather than true development.
• High Turnover: Extremely high turnover rate, with over 30 employees leaving the software/tech team in just two years.
• Career Stagnation: The lack of modern technologies and minimal training opportunities stifles career growth. New hires are expected to adapt quickly to systems that even veteran employees struggle with.
• Poor Benefits: The benefits package is minimal, offering only a 5% matched pension and life insurance, with no private healthcare or significant perks.
• Toxic Culture: The office atmosphere is unpleasant, with pretentious individuals creating an uncomfortable work environment.
• Managerial Favouritism: Managers show clear favouritism, making life difficult for those who don’t fit in or aren’t part of the inner circle.
• Lack of Collaboration: Pair programming is rarely encouraged, and requests to collaborate are met with resistance, making developers feel inadequate.
• Inefficient Processes: Development is slowed down by micromanagement, with the director controlling system design and ticket planning, leaving developers to fix bugs.
• Nepotism: Favouritism is widespread, creating a hostile environment for non-favoured employees. The company recently outsourced all UK SQA engineers to India to cut costs, with similar changes potentially looming.
• Chaotic Codebase: The codebase is disorganised, with no real plan or investment to improve it.
• Micromanagement: Persistent micromanagement from directors and project managers causes anxiety and negatively impacts staff morale.
• Empty Promises: Despite management’s claims of moving towards modern technologies, there’s no real progress. Long-term employees have seen no meaningful updates or changes
• Bleak Future: The company's reliance on outdated gambling machines, and refusal to adapt to modern apps or web-based games, puts its future at risk.
• Negative Impact on Mental Health: The work environment caused severe damage to my mental health, leading to anxiety. The constant stress forced me to leave.
