SAS reviews

4.0

75% would recommend to a friend

(3,104 total reviews)
avatar

Jim Goodnight

81% approve of CEO

58% positive business outlook

SAS has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 3,104 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The SAS employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Information Technology industry (3.9 stars).

Reviews by job title

3K reviews
3.0
Mar 2, 2017

Resist, Resist, Resist

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

There are a lot of pros already covered in other reviews: Alright Pay Alright benefits Work/ Life balance is good If you're on Cary, NC's campus then the art, landscape, and gym are amazing! I have found people in other departments have been very nice and supportive.

Cons

Management based on how long you've been with the company not actual ability to manage or lead. Case and point would be my manager. As long as you're her friend on Facebook and don't ask her to actually do her job then she loves you. Management splits their "heavy lifting" duties to their employees so they don't have to do anything. As long as the managers play the social politic game with the upper management then they'll never have to work again! Little upward mobility depending on your department. In my department there is no growth. You're stuck as whatever position you were hired in until you've been here 10+ years, then you get to become a Sr. of your position. Goody, goody. Resistance to change on all fronts. If you have an idea just keep it to yourself. Management is set in their ways and will attempt to get you fired or will flat out ignore you when you try to offer up any ideas for how things could change. HR is a joke.

1.0
Jan 29, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Dr. Goodnight's rock collection is really cool. Campus is very peaceful on a warm autumn day. Food in cafeteria is above average.

Cons

No sense of urgency. 9-5 mentality (at best) across company. Benefits are not as great as advertised. Company revenue could be 5x with proper focus, direction and vision.

5.0
Aug 10, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I think of my team at SAS more of an extended family than as coworkers. I'm still relatively new to the team, having only been with the company for four years, and yes I realize that is a lifetime at many software companies. People come to SAS, and for the most part they stay at SAS. The benefits are just what you've heard, fantastic perks throughout that rival many of the Silicon Valley big shots. Amazing health and wellness benefits on site, and a real focus on employee work/life balance, going even so much as giving fringe pseudo-science seminars in all sorts of interesting and forward thinking topics. I see some on Glassdoor are complaining about low pay, but I haven't really seen that in my team. People seem to be happy with compensation, and I feel I am being paid very fairly in my role, but then I did negotiate heavily when coming into the group. I've also seen decent, and on par with the industry, raises over the last few years. Nothing to get excited about, but again very fair. They're also extremely generous with their 401K dole outs. They don't do matching, like most companies, and instead pay a small contribution every paycheck whether you're contributing or not... On top of that, there's a yearly 401K payout for profit sharing (as well as a personal bonus to the employee). These aren't huge, but very fair and are very nice to receive. As for the work environment, you have some amazingly creative and intelligent people, a few floaters that have been around forever, but are kind of stuck in the past, and some of the best summer students I've ever worked with. Every company has dead weight, and yes SAS has its share, but for some reason I feel that even the drift wood in the various groups are a bit higher motivated and a bit higher classed than at most companies. There's a lot to like here, and a lot to feel proud about. It's a great company to park at if you're done hoping from job to job and just want to settle in on a nice long career. SAS definitely feels like family, and over time even if you get discouraged and mad, it's hard to turn your back on them.

Cons

When you first come to SAS there's one word thought that probably crosses a lot of people's minds... Did I just join a cult? It does feel like that, sometimes. The culture is very enclave-chiq. SAS has created a little micro-city in Cary that has everything you could possibly need, from a post office, barbershop, day care, school, amazing gym and yes, even a cemetery. The way the guards wave, non-stop, to the parading cars that enter the campus in the morning, smile plastered on their faces, you start wondering if you should be drinking the free sweet-tea in the cafeterias. It's a very different work environment than you're used to, and transplants may find it a little off-putting at first. Especially if you're an introvert-type. Not to mention, everyone seems to know everyone's business... It's hard not to, and you'll be invited to team lunches daily, to extracurricular events, and etc. Your comfort and mileage may vary. Some people are probably reading, how is this a con? It's just a little... much... at times. The only real problems I've seen around campus are just boredom of some of the lifers at SAS, who probably should have retired or left a long time ago, and the flat structure you'll hear a lot of people mention here on Glassdoor. This is not a company you can easily come in and work your way up the ranks, mostly because of the lifers. Most teams have the 20-30+ year team members who know everyone and have been around since Goodnight. They've married SAS employees, have kids that are SAS employees, etc, etc. Because of that, it's a really low-key and loose organization, I'm two rungs from the top of the company as a lowly engineer. There's really not too much more for me to progress to... To be fair, there are tons of other opportunities in the company, everything from engineering, media production, finance, to honestly being a SAS employed artist or gardener if I really wig out one day. So, there's really no excuse for feeling stuck or bored in your position. I'll likely never be a Sr. Director, though, or CTO, or etc. If you want that, you'll probably need to jump ship at some point and go to a more traditional company. Is that a con? I don't know. You'll learn a ton at SAS either way, whether you make it a lifelong journey or just a short stint on your way to other things.

Viewing 58 - 60 of 3,104 Reviews

Glassdoor has 4,072 SAS reviews submitted anonymously by SAS employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if SAS is right for you.