Lacks Leadership and Direction - Software Engineer CarGurus Employee Review

2.0
28 Dec 2020
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- Pay was decent. - Engineering colleagues were talented, and the collaboration culture was strong. - Middle management genuinely cared about their reports. This is more than I can say about other employers in Boston.

Cons

- It felt like leadership mentally abandoned our existing product offerings to dealers. While the company had been profitable selling software and ad space to dealers, by 2019 the company seemed uninterested in optimizing our core profitable products. This created a situation where feature teams felt written off when direction was roadmapped at the company. - Leadership’s investment into new product offerings felt misguided and poorly executed. Our P2P marketplace functions seemed unadvertised and phoned in, and our historical offer test alienated our dealer base (look up CarGurus Carvana Offer Test). It’s hard to feel excited about these new directions when the company can’t execute properly. - The COVID-19 layoffs were large, painful, and poorly communicated. After weeks of leadership saying that “we have the cash” and that we’d be able to weather this storm on sheer firm economics, hundreds of employees were RIFfed into a bad job market. Many high-level directors had no say in who was RIFfed, and the decisions around which teams had cuts (and by how much) seemed political. This created a culture nosedive that the company still hasn’t recovered from. - Engineering felt constantly under-resourced and understaffed. During my time there, it felt like I had to build out technologies and products that would need 4x the people to build at any other company. This led to a big culture of burnout, and that burnout culture was amplified after the COVID-19 layoffs. - It felt like there was a lot of institutionalized sexism at the company. The company hired a few VPs that would degrade and belittle the women around them. This created a culture that felt hostile towards women.

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CarGurus Response
5y
Thank you for sharing your feedback with us. We acknowledge that this past year has been extremely difficult due to the unexpected effects of COVID, which unfortunately resulted in us having to make extremely difficult decisions as a company. However, we are actively working to evolve both our structures and processes within our organization to maximize clarity, growth, and success for our employees and our organization as a whole moving forward. We’re also committed to improving and expanding upon our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts so that we can continue to foster an inclusive work environment for all. That being said, we do not tolerate sexist behavior at this company. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss any additional feedback you might have. Please feel free to reach out at (aeldridge@cargurus.com). – Andrea Eldridge, Chief People Officer

Explore other reviews about CarGurus

5.0
14 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Having completed my first three months as a Senior Engineering Manager, my experience has been very positive so far. Excellent Culture: The organization fosters a collaborative, inclusive, and supportive culture where people are encouraged to share ideas, challenge assumptions, and work together toward common goals. Leadership is approachable, and there is a strong focus on transparency and continuous improvement. Great Team: I have had the opportunity to work with a highly talented, knowledgeable, and supportive team. Everyone is willing to help, share expertise, and contribute to collective success, making onboarding and collaboration seamless. Technology-Forward and Innovation-Driven, The company embraces modern technologies and remains technology-agnostic, selecting the best tools and platforms for the problem at hand rather than being tied to specific vendors. The organization is proactive in exploring emerging technologies, including cloud, platform engineering, and AI, which creates an exciting environment for learning and innovation. Overall, my first three months have reinforced that this is a great place to grow professionally while working on meaningful and technically challenging initiatives.

Cons

The hybrid work model requires employees to be in the office three days per week, which may not suit everyone. However, I personally appreciate the opportunity to collaborate face-to-face, build relationships, and connect with colleagues. Combined with the office perks and supportive environment, I do not currently have any major cons to report.

2.0
20 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Nice office environment with free food and drinks available. The gym and company perks are a nice bonus. There are also some genuinely good people on the team who make the workplace more enjoyable.

Cons

Management can feel overly political, and some managers appear to give more attention and opportunities to favorites rather than treating employees consistently. While the company talks about supporting mental health, the day-to-day culture does not always reflect that message. There is also growing uncertainty about long-term job stability as AI becomes more integrated into the work.

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