Startup culture with many of the pros and cons - Software Engineer CARVANA Employee Review

3.0
Apr 2, 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Benefits are good (healthcare, 401k, PTO, etc.). The office is a generally fun environment. There are often nerf darts flying around, and people joking around with each other so it makes working an enjoyable experience. The engineers are very good at their job, and I learned a lot from everyone there. The company provides food every once in a while, which I always appreciate. There are a lot of events throughout each month, which is nice to break up the monotony of work. The problems they are working on are interesting and fun to work on.

Cons

Open office is very distracting, but management seems to love it and show no sign of doing anything different - this is only compounded as the company grows and the office becomes more and more crowded. I don't consider work to be my primary focus in life, and I often felt like I was shamed for wanting to work my eight hours and go home. The work environment would be considered more "hostile" by others coming from a more professional business. Sexual innuendos, swearing, and crude jokes are rampant. The people are nice, but the company culture has somewhat embraced the fact that people can say whatever they want. There are a lot of growing pains with the company, but that is to be expected by such a high growth company. The engineering department has reorganized itself quite a few times over the past year, because it can't decide what works and what does not. This caused raises to be put off for months because management was still in the process of deciding what the review process was supposed to look like.

Explore other reviews about CARVANA

5.0
Jun 17, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Pay is good, consistent up in pay

Cons

Driving, careless and unsafe drivers while you’re doing your job

2.0
Jun 19, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

* Corporate roles offer flexibility, and no one micromanages how you structure your 8-hour day. * Good holiday schedule and work-life balance if you’re in the right role.

Cons

No clear vision or long-term strategy for the Safe & Secure department. * Constant reorganizations and changing priorities. * Positions eliminated, reinstated, and eliminated again. * No stability or clear career path. * Lack of structure and accountability. * “Blind leading the blind” culture. * Chronic understaffing. * Employees expected to do the work of two or three people. * No additional compensation for increased workload. * Leadership’s answer to resource constraints is to “be scrappy.” * High levels of burnout. * Extremely low morale. * Significant loss of talent and leadership. * Employees quitting without another job lined up due to poor working conditions. * Operations Center dismantled, relocated, and then effectively rebuilt again with no clear strategic reason. * Experienced employees terminated, only to recreate similar functions later. * Loss of institutional knowledge. * Frequent reactive decisions instead of proactive planning. * Constant uncertainty creates stress and uneasiness. * Lack of confidence in leadership direction. * Heavy workload with limited support. * Minimal investment in retaining top performers. * Environment not conducive to building a long-term career.

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