Frustrating Experience - Software Engineer Adyen Employee Review

1.0
Jul 7, 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I must admit that Adyen has some positive aspects worth mentioning. Firstly, the company is known for its cutting-edge payment technology, which initially attracted me to work there. Adyen boasts an impressive client portfolio, including some renowned global brands, which creates an aura of prestige.

Cons

Sadly, the cons I experienced during my time at Adyen significantly outweighed any potential benefits. One of the most glaring issues was that recruiting and management outright lied to me about career opportunities at Adyen during the hiring process. In North America the only career opportunities are to move into middle management. When I provided this feedback to the recruiter they started snubbing me when I would see them in person. On some teams being in the office is a performance metric. At the same time the company is still open to hire remotely or semi-remotely for some teams and roles. At Adyen there's more "talking the talk" than "walking the walk". Another drawback is the lack of effective communication within the organization. Vital information and decision making are all housed in Amsterdam. The company's hierarchy in North America stifles innovation and collaboration, with little room for input from employees at lower levels. This top-down approach creates a disengaged workforce and any feedback regarding this to management is taken personally. Frankly put, management is bad and there are too many cooks in the kitchen. Furthermore, the management in North America often fail to recognize and appreciate the hard work and dedication of its employees. There is a clear lack of transparent performance evaluations and opportunities for growth. This lack of recognition and limited career advancement prospects contribute to low morale and high employee turnover. This means at Adyen careers hinge more on playing politics than being good at your job. People are regularly laid off for their boss not liking them despite being solid performers. After two years at Adyen you need to move on to keep your salary and experience from remaining stagnant. The office is not a conducive place to get work done. It was so loud that most people just wore headphones all day.

Explore other reviews about Adyen

5.0
Jan 8, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Food in the office, annual trips, can't complain about the pay

Cons

Limited upward mobility, peers in the industry (Stripe) pay about 50% more

2
2.0
Apr 28, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Office - the offices are some of the nicest offices I’ve worked in. Barista on site and pretty good lunch every day. Travel - there is an annual trip to Amsterdam and you can travel through Europe from that. PTO - European time off mindset. You’re able to take a fair amount of time off. Some people - there are some really smart, caring, hardworking people but unfortunately they aren’t in leadership positions. Product - it’s fun to work on the product while it’s still evolving

Cons

Leadership - some leaders were there at the right place/right time and the lack of leadership experience is evident. They pawn career growth off entirely onto their reports and their ego gets hurt when their leadership is questioned or feedback is given that they should own more. Instead of taking that feedback, they hand over even more “leadership” tasks to individuals. They barely understand the day to day of their peers and are consistently questioned about what they do. If leaders were having an impact on their reports, there wouldn’t be these questions. It’s better to not voice concerns to your lead cause then you’ll just be on their troublemaker list. Toxic culture - if high school like cliquey culture is your thing, Adyen is for you. There’s a weird gossipy vibe for some teams globally. Along with that, there were times harassment and bullying from leadership was condoned. The heavy drinking culture lead to a number of times things got out of hand and lead to people being put into situations they shouldn’t have had to deal with. Then those same leads were given additional chances to continue the behavior till it cost money. If you see something, it’s better to stay quiet than speak up cause then you will have a target on you. Team members are too afraid to actually voice concerns. Pay - Pay can start pretty good but once you’re in, the pay increases are minimal. Options were a joke compared to previous employers. They want people to work there for “the right reasons” but you can compete a bit more on pay. Growth opportunities - there used to be more of a culture to try new roles and go back which was a positive. More recently, growth opportunities are limited and it’s more of a vibe versus tangible impact. You can bring evidence of work but if the you’re not more extroverted or have more of a pick me energy, you likely won’t move up at Adyen. This can be team specific so ask how growth decisions are made within that team. Leadership doesn’t really have an answer on how these things are measured and just get angry if you ask about it. If you want to coast, this would be the spot for you. Numerous people on the team would comment about working too hard and they were right. Product - stop breaking things with product and make operations pick up the slack.

6
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