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Software engineers tell Glassdoor that Walmart pays more than Facebook
- United857 13y agoIsn't Glassdoor data purely self-reported? Is there any central or peer review process on the data? How could a reputable newspaper like the Post do a article on the basis of that alone?
- wlk 13y agoThe article says the this data is self-reported: "Web site Glassdoor compiled self-reported salary data of more than 33,000 software engineers over the past year"
- saosebastiao 13y agoThey would have to pay me more to work there too.
- unfletch 13y agoBase salary isn't everything.
- BigChiefSmokem 13y agoI asked the recruiter multiple times if what Fox (the movie studio) was offering was legit. They offered me $20,000 more than Microsoft.
- logicallee 13y agowhich is a huge difference. you can hire half-time maid/cook with that. Did you take it?
- diziet 13y agoYou forget to take into account the tax bracket!
- muzz 13y agoWhy does that matter?
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- dennisgorelik 13y ago$20K extra if you are already $100K+/year is heavily taxed. You can lose about 40% of it (social security, medicare, federal income tax, state income tax).
- BigChiefSmokem 13y agoSure did. It's sort of bittersweet because I really wanted to work for Microsoft since I was a kid but to me my salary is part of my worth and I don't want to undermine the value of my career by taking a lower pay. I don't think the work is as challenging as it would have been at a tech giant (I'm pretty much a glorified UI/front-end web developer) but I do get to work alongside the Hollywood crowd which IMO is as exciting as working at a "cool" Silicon Valley gig. Also, I don't think startups pay much anyhow, especially in LA (I've had to laugh off some offers from the Santa Monica startups, sorry but $80k for a Senior Engineer is just ludicrous) - those jobs are better suited for the college grads. Anyways, the above average pay in my case has to do with the fact that the studio makes a ton of money and are willing to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to talent (IT or otherwise), and that the area we work at has a very high cost of living.
- ucha 13y agoSource: http://www.glassdoor.com/blog/15-tech-companies-software-engineer-salary-revealed-glassdoor-report/ http://www.glassdoor.com/blog/15-tech-companies-software-eng...
- wlk 13y agoThis is article and data from last year, published: October 18, 2012
- donretag 13y agoWalmart has a division called Walmart Labs that is based in Silicon Valley. They are working on many complex projects, especially around Big Data. Not sure how big that engineering group is compared to the rest of Walmart IT, but I would assume that group is nicely paid and working on interesting problems.
- lquist 13y agoEntry level (i.e., junior dev) salaries at Walmart Labs are $100k. This is based off of multiple data points.
- saraid216 13y ago> multiple Approximate number? Are we talking 2, 20, 200?
- lquist 13y ago2
- thegoleffect 13y agoI don't know anyone who has joined at rank Junior Software Engineer I (doesn't necessarily mean you are wrong though). Everyone I know who joined young (and there aren't many...) came in at JSWE III which requires prior experience and is roughly commensurate with $100k industry-wide.
- jamesaguilar 13y agoFor anyone wondering why this might be, you may benefit from looking up the term "compensating differential" on Wikipedia. The general idea is that if a job has less appeal (because it is less pleasant or prestigious, which it's reasonable to believe SWE for Walmart is), you have to pay more to get the same talent.
- bentcorner 13y ago"Where there's muck there's brass"
- prateekj 13y agoI was about to say the exact same thing before I read your comment. It doesn't matter if you get more money, you will still be a software engineer at Walmart!
- jamesaguilar 13y agoHmm, that said, this could easily just be a reflection of biases and preconceptions software engineers have about Walmart. For all you or I know, those guys over at Walmart Labs/Walmart Ecommerce are having a blast and getting paid a bunch to do it.
- thegoleffect 13y agoI know a few people here who say that it is their "dream" job. But, that's mostly because @WalmartLabs is treated like an independent startup with its own management, ecosystem, and philosophies. The employees who can make a huge impact and have awesome bosses are very happy - this would be true at any company.
- saraid216 13y agoOdd. I'd say the same thing, except s/Walmart/Facebook.
- ryankshaw 13y agoI have an old saying: "If you want to make good money you can do something that either: a. no one else can do or b. no one else wants to do but if you want to make really good money, do something no else can do AND no one else wants to do."
- lquist 13y agoThis won't apply to everyone, but before applying to Walmart/Walmart Labs, do remember that Walmart will ask you to pass a drug test.
- diogenescynic 13y agoYou may not know, but does the Dept. of Justice announcing they won't challenge state medical marijuana laws have any effect on pre-employment drug testing? Why or why not? Most employers seem to be moving away from it, in my experience.
- awda 13y agoIndependent of state (medical or otherwise) marijuana laws, employers still drug test (even in WA, where personal pot use is legal, for example). Pot users aren't a protected class for discrimination purposes, afaik. I agree that it seems silly. Things are a bit different in the software world, where employers are moving away from drug testing because they need all the talent they can get. It turns out some potheads are actually pretty productive members of society if you give them a chance.
- malandrew 13y agoI read somewhere that among Silicon Valley engineers, the usage rate is like 40% or so. If that is true, then when almost 1 in 2 engineers smokes, you can't afford to discriminate.
- awda 13y agoYep. Among the US population as a whole, lifetime illicit drug use is something like 50%. So I wouldn't be too surprised if it was that high among SV engineers.
- lawnchair_larry 13y agoMost tech employers never had it to begin with. I don't understand how it's legal, honestly.
- jcomis 13y agoNot surprised really. Wal-Mart (labs I'm guessing) knows they need to put up significantly more cash to attract talent given the negative/boring/un-prestigious way most people perceive the brand.
- joyinsky 13y agoAre they rebuilding RetailLink? It is the most horrible piece of software ever.
- joyinsky 13y agoThey should hire some usability engineers and shot the ones who did design RetailLink user interface.
- lawnchair_larry 13y agoGlassdoor data is useless, especially if you are trying to get "averages" from it.
- foobarqux 13y agoFor entry level it might be okay. Non-entry level or positions where bonus is a large percentage of total comp it is useless. Listed compensation for non-entry investment banking or trading is widely inaccurate.
- theorique 13y agoBut I bet they don't have a foozball table or all the Red Bull you can drink! They aren't COOL! Are they? ARE THEY?!
- thegoleffect 13y agoTechnically, there is a foosball table and a vending machine with Red Bull. Employees prefer Cola & Coffee though (those are free).
- theorique 13y agoSay it ain't so - Walmart has the cool and cachet of SV's hottest startups? You mean I took a 40% salary hit for 0.00001% of worthless equity (and free Red Bull that makes me jumpy) for nothing? Noooo...
- hakcermani 13y agoWhat about years of experience. Was that factored in ? FB attracts younger folk. Networking code needs a bit more experience than JS/html/css !
- ellaVader 13y agoIt's just too bad they can't pay their retail employees a livable wage!
- gknoy 13y agoI believe they are transitioning to full time positions for exactly that reason.
- redblacktree 13y agoTo avoid paying livable wages?
- encoderer 13y agoRight, but that doesn't include the extremely valuable equity grants given to engineers at these high-growth tech companies.
- felipe 13y agoWould you call FB high-growth? At least from a VC standpoint "high-growth" is a 10x return, and not 2.5x like FB (on a good day)
- encoderer 13y agoPublicly traded companies are not measured by the VC yardstick. Facebook is certainly high growth. And even if you don't want to use the traditional Wallstreet "growth stock" measurement, try this one out: If you were a facebook engineer hired 1 year ago given a (relatively small) $100k RSU grant that vests over 4 years, that grant today is worth $285,000. And today, on your 1 year anniversary, your first 25% chunk would've vested, giving you $72k in pre-tax income. As somebody who experienced this recently in another "high growth" dotcom IPO, the term I'd use for that is "down payment on a house."
- felipe 13y agoYou forgot to subtract the amount you "paid" for the RSUs by not making an optimal salary.
- encoderer 13y agoInteresting comment. Can't say I agree with it. There are a lot of benefits to having an equity grant as part of a total comp package for highly paid employees like software engineers and management. Even more so if you're fortunate enough to get non-qual options and not RSU's. Among other things, if that employee had insisted on no equity all salary, he'd have POSSIBLY gotten that extra $25k a year. The guy next to him would be the one with $72k. You'd rather earn the "optimal" salary? And sure, share price can go down but if you don't believe a company is going to continue building wealth, why work there?
- malandrew 13y agoOn this note, what is a good source of salary information for series A and series B companies? For various reasons, I would imagine that comparing salaries in large mature companies and Series A/B startups to be like comparing apples and oranges.