Is Ciena a good company to work for?

Ciena has an overall rating of 4.1 out of 5, based on over 2,683 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 1% over the last 12 months. 81% of employees would recommend working at Ciena to a friend and 74% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Ciena have been left by employees working as Manager , Director and Software Engineer .

Does Ciena pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Ciena employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.8 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Ciena. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Ciena?

81% of Ciena employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Ciena 4.1 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.1 for culture and values and 3.8 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Ciena?

Software Engineer (195) , Senior Software Engineer (93) , Embedded Software Engineer (52) , Lead Engineer (33) , Senior Manager (33) , Intern (32) , Software Developer (32) , Network Engineer (31) , Project Manager (29) , Hardware Engineer (27) , Software Engineer 2B (27) , Software Engineer II (24) , Director (23) , Systems Engineer (22) , Engineer (21)

What are the pros of working at Ciena according to real employee reviews?

"Good benefits and pension contribution." ((in 177 reviews)); "People are great and easy to get along with." ((in 165 reviews)); "Great Culture and Minds" ((in 154 reviews)); "Good salaries (I was here on placement and amazed at my salary)." ((in 81 reviews)); "Great Work Culture and Co" ((in 80 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Ciena according to real employee reviews?

"Many of the managers have not been trained and do poor to fair jobs managing effectively" ((in 44 reviews)); "Recent merger with Cyan(now Blueplanet)expose you to cutting edge technologies but there is no training plan for employees, you are on your own." ((in 19 reviews)); "Yes working in medium to large sized companies there is a disconnect sometimes between senior management and junior staff, that is well understood." ((in 9 reviews)); "Currently hiring remote workers due to pandemic but once that shifts back to being present in an office, you will see firsthand the lack of diversity." ((in 7 reviews)); "Favoritism is common, and employees are often expected to gain favor with managers instead of being recognized for their work." ((in 6 reviews))

What are employees saying about Ciena layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Ciena layoffs and their outlook for job security at Ciena in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Ciena locations?

Hanover , San Jose , Linthicum , Baltimore , Alpharetta , Atlanta , Petaluma , Denver , Spokane , Miami , Hanover , Raleigh , Dallas , San Francisco , Research Triangle Park , Maryland City , Linthicum Heights , New York , Boston , Miramar , Grand Rapids , Durham , Richardson , Seattle , City of Spokane Valley , Spokane Valley , Freehold , New Brunswick , Newark , Chicago

Ciena reviews

4.1

81% would recommend to a friend

(2,289 total reviews)

Gary B. Smith

85% approve of CEO

74% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (2,289 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Ciena has an employee rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars, based on 2,289 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The Ciena employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Telecommunications industry (3.6 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

2.0

May 28, 2010

Very Vertical, Poor Communication

Senior software engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Some of the technology is complex and interesting, there is a strong pool of talent in coworkers, and select team managers do an excellent job with their team members.

Cons

Management style is very vertical and often micromangement, Compensation changes and promotions seem to be about playing favorites rather than work ethic or performance, HUGE communication issues between departments and teams, some employees who have been there for a very long time have not learned new technology and are very resistant to change.

4.0

Feb 20, 2010

Was a great place to work, but now questionnable due to Nortel acquisition

Senior quality engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Ciena had a great work/life balance with perks such as telecommuting plans, flexible work hours, health club reimbursements, and company wellness plans. The benefits package was quite lucrative, and the salaries were on par with other companies in the telecommunications industry. Management had an open door policy, and employees were empowered to work autonomously to achieve their assignments. The people are great to work with and sincerely want to help you when you ask - there truly is a sense of being a huge family.

Cons

Ciena is still an organization where it is important as to who you know rather than what you know in order to advance. The internal systems are very archaic and disjoined, and a silo mentality exists within certain groups. Gary Smith and upper management really sold out Ciena during the Nortel acquisition - who purchased who? Most Nortel management remained while Ciena management will most likely soon be shown the door. Many employees were very loyal to Ciena, and put forth a tremendous amount of effort to build the organization over the years. However, now they anxiously wait for severance packages.

5.0

Feb 18, 2010

Great place to work

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Everyone is so friendly and supportive. Full of very smart people, the best at what they do. Ciena only hires the best. Everyone around you helps you succeed.

Cons

Sometimes there are too many level of senior management. IT department is somewhat incompetent.

Viewing 2284 - 2286 of 2,289 Reviews

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IT Project / Program Manager

Field Service Project Management

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Global Process Owner - Sales and Operations Planning

Ciena

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Very Vertical, Poor Communication

Was a great place to work, but now questionnable due to Nortel acquisition

Great place to work

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