I went to Autodesk so you don't have to - Designer Autodesk Employee Review

2.0
30 Jan 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Helping professional designers become more efficient with the power of good design and software Challenging and interesting problems to solve Being surrounded by knowledgeable, talented and skilled individual contributors Good starting pay Employee stock purchase scheme is more generous than in other places, but requires self-sacrifice.

Cons

Bait and switch at the offer stage. You are only measured on what you are told to do. Personal initiatives are not encouraged. Several layers of management that somehow survive every restructuring while individual contributors are left on their own. Loyalty only goes up at Autodesk Managers and individual contributions tend to be measured on how well they make their boss look to their own superiors. Huge amount of politics, distracts from getting work done. Navigating aforementioned politics seem to be the main deciding factor in measuring personal success. Line manager will not hesitate to use performance review as opportunities to "whip you into place". Zero investment in what employees want. Only in what benefits the manager. Annual re-organisation (may include layoff) with zero positive impact for individual team members. Issues with managers are reported and swept under the rug. Strategy changes every 6 months with team members having to bear the load, lowers morale and makes personal efforts seem wasted. Forget pay rises and growth opportunities at this company (unless you are a manager)

Explore other reviews about Autodesk

5.0
1 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Good WLB Low Turnover Rates Interesting Projects/Work Full Benefits + 401k

Cons

Medium Pay, Not Amazing Stock Packages

2.0
12 Jun 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The individual contributors, your peers you work with day in and day out are fantastic people! At the IC level, for the most part, it feels like everyone is in the fight together. The work/life balance is good depending on which business unit/team you're aligned with. The benefits are pretty solid, especially the 6 week sabbatical.

Cons

Autodesk moves at the pace of a snail, very slow to take action on anything. Selling is very difficult with all the undocumented approvals, processes, red tape and very few people are willing to actually help! Leadership doesn't care about the people their decisions impact. Feedback is rarely listened to and acted upon. Pay is terrible compared to competitors in this space. Autodesk has embraced a ton of change over the last few years with new marketing, sales and IT leadership and it shows. They are not shy in showing their desire to be the next Oracle at the expense of their people. They are constantly changing tools, processes, people, roles, you name it so you feel like you're under water constantly. Lipstick on a pig.

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