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      Cengage

      Engaged Employer

      Cengage reviews

      3.0

      35% would recommend to a friend

      (2,396 total reviews)
      avatar

      Michael Hansen

      43% approve of CEO

      27% positive business outlook

      Ratings by category

      3.4

      Diversity & inclusion

      3.4

      Work/Life balance

      2.9

      Culture & values

      2.9

      Compensation and benefits

      2.5

      Career opportunities

      2.4

      Senior management

      Cengage has an employee rating of 3.0 out of 5 stars, based on 2,396 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an average working experience there. The Cengage employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Mídia e comunicação industry (3.7 stars).

      Ratings by demographic groups

      Reviews by job title

      2K reviews
      2.0
      Dec 21, 2023

      Losing confidence

      Product manager
      Recommend
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      I used to feel really good about working for this company. The mission and ethos was great, they really did their best to do right by us during the pandemic, and the people were (and are) great. Always been a bit slower as a tech company to catch up with the modern world, but the passion has always been there.

      Cons

      Ever since the company secured new investments, the entire focus has switched to ROI. Higher ups are less and less focused on effective and honest communication with employees, even pinning employees wanting to know about layoffs as us potentially being nosey. 2 Wellness Days granted during the pandemic were cut, because everyone’s mental health is fully restored post-pandemic obviously, on top of general PTO benefits diminishing. Constant reorgs and layoffs, always feeling like your job could be gone at any moment. Switching our primary method of communication from Slack/Zoom with Teams, which as a fully remote company is more than likely going to have a negative effect on productivity and efficiencies. This has all been in the name of making the company more profitable and efficient, but by the company they certainly dont mean the employees.

      avatar
      Cengage Response
      2y
      Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. Our ability to meet the moment, and best serve students and educators, and our desire to increase our profitability, are not opposing goals, in fact, I see them as two sides to the same coin – we need resources available to invest in innovation. I agree with you that our employees underpin our success, which is why transparency and candor around changes happening in the organization are priorities for myself and the entire leadership team –whether through written communications, First Friday forums or town halls with leaders in the businesses. We always welcome feedback on how we can help answer questions or clarify direction in these forums. Additionally, ensuring we are supporting employee health and wellbeing continues to be at the forefront. We continue to offer the Wellness Week, as we recognize that additional time at the end of the year is extremely valuable in helping our employees’ recharge. We also offer a range of benefits and services to support employees both at work and in their personal lives. Thank you for your feedback as we continue to evolve, and I encourage you to reach out to me with additional feedback on how we can continue to improve. Best, Michael Hansen, CEO
      1.0
      Aug 19, 2016

      On the road back to bankruptcy

      Marketing
      Recommend
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      Co-workers and the customers. I really enjoyed having the privilege of meeting and working with so many college instructors. They are a passionate bunch who deeply care about education and how they can reach students. It makes me feel good about the future of higher ed in the US to know that there is such a dedicated core of instructors.

      Cons

      The company has already cut staffing to the bone and is now sawing deep into the marrow. Financial performance of the company has been dismal, which is partly due to over-inflated revenue projections, partly due to softer than expected digital sales and partly due to lower student enrollment overall. The company's investors (who bought the company out of chapter 11 bankruptcy) seem to have lost any desire to grow the company and take it public, and are instead getting their money out of Cengage by bankrupting it. How else do you explain paying out tens of millions of dollars in shareholder dividends and stock repurchases by borrowing money -- which is exactly what the company did last year. You don't have to take my word for any of this -- the financial statements are available on the company's website. This company is losing revenue and increasing their debt load, which is the exact same formula which landed them in bankruptcy court the first time around. Meanwhile, cuts are occurring by canceling bonuses, merit increases and laying off employees in droves. The morale of the company has gone from bad to toxic as execs regularly belittle and bully employees. The new c-level executive has joined the bullies club in the c-suite and rules by fear and intimidation.

      4.0
      Nov 5, 2015

      Great people, but too much uncertainty.

      Anonymous employee
      Recommend
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      - Work with intelligent, engaged people - Be an agent for change and improvement in a time of advancing technologies - People of varied experience and backgrounds welcome.

      Cons

      - Direction changes often, leaving tasks unfinished, money wasted, and talented people out of work. - Teams are still siloed, in spite of the fact that upper management SAYS they don't want that. - Too many talkers - not enough do-ers.

      Viewing 19 - 21 of 2,396 Reviews
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      Glassdoor has 2,592 Cengage reviews submitted anonymously by Cengage employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Cengage is right for you.