Epic Systems

I’ve worked at Epic for several years. Overall, I’m really happy at Epic.

I like my job, I like the company, and I like Madison.

• My coworkers are brilliant. At Epic, it’s safe to assume someone is smart and competent unless they prove otherwise. I feel lucky to have gotten in the door, because there are some fearsome brains here.
• Epic does good (mission statement: Do Good, Have Fun, Make Money). I genuinely believe that our software improves healthcare. Decision-making is long-term and based on a set of principles that are pretty hard to argue with (e.g., keep commitments, find root causes and fix processes, don’t tolerate mediocrity). Even when I don’t agree with a decision, I respect the logic and integrity of this place. I am proud of how we do business.
• The campus is gorgeous and the food is outstanding and cheap. Every 5 years, you get a 4-week paid sabbatical anywhere in the world, with flight and hotel paid for you and a guest.
• I am never bored. This job is hard, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. There is always something new to learn. In the EDI division in particular, there is tremendous variety in our work. I get along well with my team leader and we’ve found a niche that works really well for me.

Even though I’m happy overall, no job or company is perfect:

• Not enough paid time off. You max out at 3 weeks of vacation and 6 sick days. The sabbatical every 5 years is great, but you don’t get much of a break during the other 4. Even paid holidays are minimal (7.5 days). Once you start thinking about having a family, time off becomes important.

• Epic as a whole and the EDI division in particular is understaffed. They are trying to hire more people (and lots of new people are starting all the time), but the hire rate isn’t fast enough to keep up with the work. People work hard to keep up. I read some of the other reviews and lots of people say that 70-80 hour weeks are the norm. That is nonsense. The real average for the EDI division is closer to 50 hours. Sure, there are people working more than that, and there are going to be crunch times, but an average of around 50 hours is doable for most people (although it’s a little higher than I would prefer).

Make the job sustainable for long-term employees. People with families need more flexibility and time off.