3M-Still a great place to work-if you're a young boot licker. - Retired Supply Chain Manager 3M Employee Review

4.0
Dec 17, 2008
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Innovative work is rewarded, but you must toot your own horn, as management expects your best all the time. Benefits were excellent for a long time, but are lessening as times change. Flex time in Austin is encouraged, making for less stress. Open building design encourages more interaction between sales/marketing/engineering/lab.

Cons

Questionable selection of management, placing untested people in level 14 jobs who have never gone through the ranks. Expectations that a canoe can move just as fast with 10 oars and only 4 rowers. Salaries are lower than at other equally rated jobs in the Austin area since they are tied to national averages.

Explore other reviews about 3M

5.0
Jun 15, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good company to work for.

Cons

Large corp culture for employees

4.0
Jun 28, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Compensation is genuinely competitive — one of the stronger-paying manufacturing roles you'll find in the area. Benefits package is comprehensive and well above average. The retirement account and stock options are a real standout, especially for a machine operator role; 3M clearly invests in its employees long-term. Day-to-day, the people on the floor make the job. Coworkers were hardworking and easy to get along with, which goes a long way in a production environment. Upper management is what you'd expect from a large corporation — a bit removed from the floor — but that's pretty standard for a company of that size, Not a deal breaker.

Cons

The shift schedule is rough. Rotating between 12-hour days and nights on a swing schedule sounds manageable on paper, but constantly flipping your sleep schedule takes a real toll over time. Work-life balance is difficult to maintain when your "days off" are often spent just recovering and readjusting, and you can easily miss out on normal life things — social plans, family time, errands — simply because your schedule doesn't line up with the rest of the world that week. Upper management can also be a friction point. When people who haven't touched the machines in years (or ever) come to the floor with strong opinions about how things should run, it creates frustration. The folks actually operating the equipment day in and day out develop real expertise, and that doesn't always feel acknowledged from above.

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