Intuit

In certain teams, especially where managers lead with empathy and clarity, the culture can be strong and supportive. These environments exist and offer a healthy, productive space. If you are considering a role, learning about your future manager and their leadership style is essential before accepting any offer.

The vacation policy is generous, and for those who manage to find a balanced workload, it allows for meaningful rest and recovery.

Visibility and ownership are highly rewarded. Individuals who take initiative, lead cross-functional efforts, and make their work known often advance faster. While this promotes leadership, it can sometimes come at the expense of collaborative engineering culture, which is a big risk.

Facilities and infrastructure are excellent. The offices are well-equipped and comfortable for both hybrid and in-person work models.

The technical ecosystem includes many microservices and large-scale challenges. Engineers working on the core systems will find opportunities to solve complex problems and grow in scale-oriented thinking.

The work culture has become increasingly high-pressure and performance-driven. In some environments, this has led to internal competition, reduced collaboration, and a noticeable increase in political behavior.

Leadership turnover and structural shifts have impacted team stability. Several employees have described a cultural shift that no longer reflects the company’s original values.

Based on my experience, many of the concerns raised in internal feedback surveys are not directly addressed. Employees are often left feeling unheard when ineffective leadership is allowed to persist without meaningful action.

While headquarters in the US has been a strong force behind Intuit’s global success, communication gaps and lack of local visibility have contributed to misalignment at the Israel site.

Compensation packages in Israel are positioned below many comparable companies in the region. For some, this is offset by stability and benefits. For others, it creates a mismatch with market expectations.

In several teams, the on-call demands are intense, with limited safeguards for maintaining work-life balance. This can lead to prolonged periods of stress and burnout if not well managed.

Internal misalignment and management conflicts sometimes delay execution. Engineers may find themselves navigating unclear priorities or conflicting directions from leadership.

Layoffs, though framed as strategic, have at times included high-performing individuals. I personally experienced one of these events, and I know many colleagues who were deeply affected. The communication surrounding these layoffs left many with a sense of confusion and disappointment.

Global support structures can be difficult to work with due to timezone limitations and response delays. This has a tangible impact on delivery speed and team velocity.

Engineers are sometimes evaluated based on factors outside of their control, such as cross-team blockers or organizational inefficiencies. This can negatively affect performance reviews and career growth despite an engineer’s best efforts.

This is based on firsthand experience over several years in the company, across different teams and leadership levels. These are not assumptions or emotional reactions. They are observations shared by many employees who care deeply about the work they do and the environment they do it in. The intention here is not to harm, but to help leadership understand what is broken and how to fix it.

1. Protect your engineers. Replace toxic management. Your best people are burning out or leaving. This is not because of technical challenges, but because of the behavior and decisions of their managers. In many cases, leaders who consistently underperform or create toxic environments are not held accountable. After internal feedback surveys, those with poor scores are often moved aside quietly or protected. This undermines trust in the system. If someone is harming the culture or blocking others from doing their jobs, they should not be leading teams. Engineers need real support, not corporate damage control.

2. Be transparent about layoffs. Layoffs happen, but how they are handled defines the company’s values. Letting go of hundreds of employees in a single day without context or clarity is harmful. Many of these people had strong performance ratings and deep commitment to the company. They were made to feel like they had failed. The communication was vague and cold. If structural changes are required, be clear and respectful. People deserve to know the truth, especially after giving years of service.

3. Stop rewarding style over substance. Promotions are currently driven by visibility and self-promotion. People who speak more than they deliver rise faster than those who quietly build and support the system. This discourages teamwork and integrity. Reward technical ownership, collaboration, and long-term impact. Stop promoting those who chase credit while others do the work.

4. Fix the global support bottlenecks. The support model across global teams is slow and inefficient. When engineers are blocked for days waiting on answers from time zones that do not align, delivery suffers. Either build distributed ownership with local autonomy, or commit to real 24/7 support coverage. The current setup causes unnecessary frustration and delays.

5. Reduce internal power struggles. Too many initiatives stall because of misalignment and ego at the management level. Engineers are often caught in the middle of turf wars between managers. This creates unnecessary complexity and delays projects. Leaders should be held accountable not just for delivery, but for how they collaborate across the organization.

6. Be honest about compensation. Intuit’s compensation in Israel is below market. That is a deliberate positioning decision. If the company chooses to compete on stability or culture rather than cash, that is valid. But do not pretend otherwise. Be transparent with candidates and employees about where Intuit stands in the market.

7. Respect engineering boundaries. Engineers are being asked to take on work outside their scope, often without support or authority. When their performance reviews include blockers they cannot influence, the system becomes unfair. Managers should be responsible for resolving cross-team or organizational issues. Engineers should be empowered to focus on what they were hired to do.

8. Rebuild the culture. Intuit used to be known for a strong, values-driven culture. That culture still exists in a few pockets, but it is no longer the norm. Values are now discussed more in slides than seen in practice. If the company wants to retain top talent, it must go beyond branding. Rebuilding culture starts with actions, not slogans.

This message is shared with respect. The people still working at Intuit deserve better leadership, better systems, and a workplace that reflects the company’s stated values. If leadership chooses to listen and take action, it is not too late to course-correct.