employer cover photo
employer logo
employer logo

Principal Financial Group

Engaged employer

Former SE II at PFG - Software Engineer II Principal Financial Group Employee Review

5.0
1 Jun 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

+ Fosters a collaborative work environment where teamwork is encouraged. Lots of opportunities to grow, learn, and cultivate knowledge from various disciplines. The company is a huge proponent of innovation i.e., Cloud computing and continuous learning. + The company recognizes the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance. PFG provides its employees with a supportive and flexible work environment. Back when I was still employed, there were no PTO limits, as long as you kept good performance and did your work.

Cons

+ PFG lacks competitive compensation as far as salaries go, especially after performance reviews. But, what the company lacks in salaries, they make up with their employee benefits. + High workload and tight deadlines. Most, if not, all of the work is dictated by business. Depending on the team, there may be a lot of meetings.

Explore other reviews about Principal Financial Group

5.0
24 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

good FTO policy good opportunity for career development flexible work arrangements

Cons

health insurance sucks - United annual reviews- everything's made up and the points don't matter more and more pressure to be in-office despite team members being remote

avatar
Principal Financial Group Response
4d
Thank you for taking the time to provide this feedback. Your input is valuable as we work to improve as an employer.
2.0
4 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Decent work life balance and benefits. Principal offers a pension which is unheard of in today’s age.

Cons

Pay is below average and Principal does not offer inflation raises. Once you hit the midpoint of your salary, you will get a 0% raise until you’re promoted, which will take multiple years regardless of performance. Performance reviews are vague and often used against employees to avoid promotions. At least in my department, I’ve yet to see any of the remote workers be promoted. This is starting to affect attrition and we’re already starting to see people leaving. It’s well known at this point that the best way to get promoted is to leave Principal and get rehired, which even leadership has stated publicly. This is a huge frustration and blow to morale, as it starts to feel like employees need to compete against their co-workers for raises.

1
avatar
Principal Financial Group Response
2w
We appreciate you sharing your feedback. As a leader in retirement solutions and employee benefits, we strive to provide our employees with a competitive benefits package. Our global pay philosophy is guided by market-driven principles. and we leverage third-party market data to ensure our base salary and incentives remain appropriately competitive.
See reviews by: Helpful|Rating|Date|All