Possible to make a difference, but tech debt hinders progress
Pros
It is possible to make a difference if you are determined enough. Many engineers work hard and most try.
Cons
The company has a ton of tech debt that it recognized, but is not being addressed. Management controls the time, scope and so quality is falling. The people they have hired lack fundamentals understanding of software development practices. The company often will make decisions to save small amounts of money with their facilities and tools they give to employees without understanding the opportunity cost that was lost. Overtime is required. You can't work here if you want to have a family or keep your family from hating you. Title inflation is real. Many people are actually performing one level down from their stated title and those that are not are only not failing due to putting in crazy hours. Middle management wont stickup for their people to ensure they are not burning out. They see it happening multiple times in front of them and they do nothing.
