Brilliant engineers, worst leadership in the Bay Area - Engineering Manager Cloudflare Employee Review

1.0
Jul 18, 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The brightest engineers, full stop.

Cons

The CEO is a petty narcissist, that freaks out whenever there is an incident, and shows zero trust in his team. It’s been a known problem for years. No one does anything about it, because they are afraid of him, which is strange, because he’s not a particularly charismatic or intimidating person. Leadership openly asks managers to write positive Glassdoor reviews, and responds to negative reviews by suggesting employees take it up with their manager. Unfortunately, there is a culture of managers not listening to employees, so nothing changes. CEO is obsessed with creating an “office culture”, but can’t seem to describe to anyone what that means. Leadership loves to toss around the “seat on the rocket ship” analogy, but blatantly ignores the fact that rocket ship level engineering requires rigor, deliberation, transparency, and often, moving slower to make sure the right engineering is being done. The company lurches from one incident to another, never really learning from mistakes, yet is obsessed with growing quickly. Disaster in the making, and the best employees are leaving right and left.

Explore other reviews about Cloudflare

5.0
May 1, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Very good culture and strong talent

Cons

Expectation to manage up and extremely fast paced environment

3.0
Jul 2, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Exceptionally talented team. Every IC I worked with brought deep technical skills, genuine passion, and a collaborative, empathetic approach. Compensation and equity are strong.

Cons

Senior leadership lacks a clear vision, direction shifts constantly without concrete goals. Internal competition is actively encouraged by management, which creates a toxic dynamic. No 401k match. Raises and promotions are difficult to come by once you're in, and leadership feels largely out of touch with the realities on the ground.

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