Old fashioned company run by old fashioned people - Software Engineer Arnold Clark Employee Review

I’ve been sitting on writing this review for months, hoping things would improve. Instead, they’ve continued to get worse, and I don’t have much confidence that anything meaningful will change. There’s no real career progression or structured development. The usual line is that “online courses are available,” but there’s nothing that feels relevant or tailored to digital roles. Growth isn’t actively supported, and contributions are rarely recognised in any meaningful way. You shouldn’t expect clear progression, consistent support, or a strong sense of being valued. Careers tend to stall, regardless of performance. The pension is set at the legal minimum, which says a lot about the wider approach to investing in employees. There’s a clear disconnect between leadership and how digital actually works. It’s run with a traditional, operational mindset that just doesn’t translate, and it shows in the outcomes. Working practices are rigid and out of step with modern expectations. Despite talk of flexibility, decisions tend to favour control over effectiveness, with no real evidence that it improves anything. Expectations shift constantly, which makes it hard to show progress or build toward advancement. Recognition and progression can feel inconsistent, and at times influenced more by relationships and visibility than performance, with elements of nepotism. Feedback is regularly gathered but rarely acted on in a meaningful way. There’s an employee engagement survey being pushed, but based on experience, it’s hard to believe anything will come from it. At best, digital will continue to be treated like any other function, which doesn’t really work given the nature of the role. Pay hasn’t kept up, and the overall package does very little to retain or motivate experienced people. This isn’t a business set up to support or grow digital talent. It limits progression, undervalues contribution, and creates unnecessary friction in day-to-day work. The most frustrating part is that it didn’t used to be like this. The direction of travel feels pretty clear, and it’s hard to see how things improve without significant change.