Low Pay, Broken Promises, and Zero Empathy: Sage's Toxic Work Environment - Senior Software Engineer Sage Employee Review

1.0
Oct 24, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Decent benefits to start with particularly for graduates, and the option of an office workspace if you prefer working onsite.

Cons

Where do we even begin? From an engineering standpoint, Sage offers some of the lowest compensation in the industry. Despite the challenges in retaining software engineers in today’s market, Sage is indifferent and often responds to criticism with a dismissive, “You can leave if you want to.” Over the years, Sage has gained a reputation for pushing back on employees who raise grievances, especially in cases involving discrimination. Their tactic often involves pressuring people out of the company through loyal “yes-men,” while offering empty promises of support. It's a hostile environment masked by corporate platitudes. Their latest debacle involves forcing employees back into the office three days a week, despite hiring some under the pretense of a remote work arrangement. They were careful not to explicitly state “remote” in contracts but gave assurances during the hiring process. Is Sage unaware of the abundance of remote engineering roles now available? Or is this just another way to nudge people out? Perhaps they’re hoping employees will quit rather than become eligible for redundancy packages? And then there’s HR. The official response to concerns about the forced return to office and the sudden reduction of benefits (such as cutting a 10% discount) is as cold as it gets: “If you can’t adapt to the changes, maybe Sage isn’t the place for you.” Where is the empathy? Where is the care and concern Sage claims to have for its employees? It’s becoming painfully clear that employees are seen as disposable, no matter how much they preach otherwise.

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Sage Response
1y
Thank you for your review. We’ve read your comments and are disappointed that your experience at Sage has not been satisfactory. Please note that we have a zero-tolerance policy regarding discrimination, so we highly encourage you to share your concerns about this with a member of our ER team. Regarding flexible working, our hybrid working approach is an important element of the way we work at Sage that is complemented by other benefits such as paid time to volunteer, the ability to work away for up to 10 weeks a year and free well-being support tools. More information about what we offer can be found here: https://www.glassdoor.co.uk/Benefits/Sage-United-Kingdom-Benefits-EI_IE1150.0,4_IL.5,19_IN2.htm -

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5.0
Jun 21, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Work life balance is the strongest attribute at Sage. Family matters and mental stablity is supported. Top notch benefits.

Cons

Departments with mixed roles of similar tasks, yet separate teams without collaboration.

1.0
Jul 14, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The only real positive is the people on the front lines. There are incredibly talented, hardworking employees who care deeply about customers and each other. Unfortunately, they're carrying far more than they should because leadership consistently fails to support them.

Cons

If you're looking for career growth, work-life balance, or leadership that values its employees, this is not the place. Promotions are rare, and when leadership positions do open up, qualified internal candidates are often overlooked. Watching knowledgeable, experienced employees repeatedly get passed over while less-prepared leaders are put in charge is incredibly discouraging. The reward for being a high performer is simple: more work. If you're competent, expect to take on responsibilities that belong to your manager, another team, or even leadership. You'll solve problems that aren't yours, train people above your pay grade, and be expected to clean up situations created by poor planning. Don't expect additional compensation or a promotion for doing it. Work-life balance is practically nonexistent. Being off the clock doesn't necessarily mean you're off work. Managers reach out through Teams and personal cell phones at all hours! They even joke about how funny is that mangers work at all hours around the clock. You also work a shift which "on-call" this includes evenings, weekends, holidays, and during approved time off. Boundaries are not respected, and saying "no" doesn't feel like a real option.The culture is driven almost entirely by metrics and fear. Employees constantly worry about being placed on performance plans, because it's a constant threat from managers. What's most telling is that even managers have admitted, in private, that they're afraid of losing their own jobs if they push back on this culture. If the people with more authority and more job security are working scared, what does that mean for the employees below them with far less protection? This isn't a management style — it's fear running downhill through the entire structure. Morale is incredibly low and it's nothing a pizza party can fix. Stress and burnout are so common that it feels like everyone either knows someone on a performance plan or someone out on medical leave because of the constant pressure/stress. Instead of asking why so many people are struggling, leadership seems to focus on numbers. Micromanagement is relentless they have even implemented "Workforce Management" PTO is managed by a system. Trust is talked about but rarely demonstrated. Even when you're the person repeatedly asked to rescue difficult customer situations or fix operational problems, you're still second-guessed and monitored every step of the way. It creates an environment where people are afraid to make decisions and are constantly looking over their shoulder. Training is another major weakness. New employees are expected to become productive quickly despite inconsistent onboarding and a training experience that often feels disorganized and unnecessarily confrontational. Instead of building confidence, it leaves people frustrated and dependent on coworkers to learn the job. The hardest-working employees seem to suffer the most. They work late nights, weekends, and holidays while carrying responsibilities well beyond their job descriptions. Over time, many become exhausted, disengaged, or leave altogether.

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