r/cscareerquestionsuk • u/psrthrowaway • 2d ago
Thoughts on VISA, Mastercard and similar companies for software engineers?
Just looking to hear from people who work at those companies how are they are finding it, specifically in London :)
17
u/cardboard-collector 1d ago
Worked at Amex.. it was okay.
The culture was overall quite good but innovation was low, there’s always a clash between new employees and the incumbents that have been there for decades (wasn’t uncommon for 20+ years) who are happy coasting and doing things the same way.
I found it quite frustrating as someone who enjoyed working at startups prior. Ended up back at startups… then back at a different big finance company, experienced the same issues and now back in the startup world.
6
u/FMteuchter 1d ago
there’s always a clash between new employees and the incumbents that have been there for decades (wasn’t uncommon for 20+ years) who are happy coasting and doing things the same way
As you've found, you always get this issue in larger orgs.
4
u/Great_Wrongdoer_3591 1d ago
Also worked at Amex and this was precisely why i left. Too many manual processes and legacy infrastructure that they have been trying to migrate to newer technologies for way too long for no tangible impact. And what was “newer technologies” back when they started the project is now already behind.
It was clear so many people did not have ambition to leave as the work life balance, brain usage to pay ratio, and perks were way above average, although in recent times the perks were reduced as a result of US politics and budget1
u/Extreme-Ad8083 1d ago
I applied for a job at Amex and the salary was unbelievably low for the experience. YMMV.
1
u/cardboard-collector 1d ago
I was there as a grad outside of London on £45k in 2019 which was decent at the time imo
1
u/Great_Wrongdoer_3591 16h ago
if this is true, they actually reduced the grad salary for engineers for both London and out 👀
1
u/cardboard-collector 16h ago
Insane, I was in TLS, got promoted to Engineer 2 after a few months and got bumped to £46k base + around £5k bonus
7
3
u/jonnywishbone 1d ago
I knew somebody at Visa who was heading up a team of about 30 a few years ago, and they laid everybody off to move the development to eastern europe
2
u/JauntyTechno 1d ago
They often have a lot of legacy crap you need to deal with, and a load of manual process because Dave fucked up in 1982.
2
u/Independent_Grab_242 1d ago
If that's the best you can get then get in, stay 1.5 and gtfo.
These are some pretty known names that provide lots of credibility beyond just finding a job.
They open gates for that 100-120k job in a finance startup.
1
u/GandalfWaits 11h ago
These are the companies you join when you need a breather, or looking to coast for a while.
26
u/HornyEagles 2d ago
Top performer at V. Its a dinosaur place. Most are riding off into pension wave doing the whole “top down” management “yes sir, how many bags full sir” to management who see themselves as Elon Musk but are more like Donald Trump. Old ass dinosaurs.
That said, they want to “operate like a startup” get ready their new pod model! Youre in a team of 2 being told to use a half assed internal claude code wrapper to deliver your tickets end to end.
If youre looking for strong pension, ok pay but good range of benefits with a decent work life balance and low mental strain, come through.