Too old-fashioned and traditional and not a place you want to stay at - Marketing COMSOL Employee Review

2.0
Jan 20, 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

-Free use of gym -Free coffee, tea, sparkling water and fresh fruit in a clean kitchen -Free catered lunches every Friday -Own office or shared office with 1-2 people -Close to restaurants and the Burlington Mall -Impressive product -Knowledgeable technical engineers -Holiday Party -Yoga classes on-site

Cons

Where to start... -Nepotism...like hardcore. Huge problem when management is picking people they know over qualified people for open positions. Friends and family don't belong in the workplace. -Low pay. For the amount of tasks your asked to do, compensation really should be higher -No HR department. So if you're having issues you'd like to some help resolving, good luck. -Clueless management. They have no idea what they're doing. They ignore new and fresh ideas and would rather stick to what they know. Resistant to change and there's only one way to do things. If you're trying to help make processes more efficient, don't waste your time. -Terrible email retention. If you need to save emails, get ready to copy and paste each one in a Word doc. -No remote working option. You have to be in the office, no matter what. Even if there's a terrible snow storm (unless a state of emergency is called). Or you can take PTO if you don't want to risk driving. -Crappy health insurance. You're better off buying your own rather than getting a company plan because it really doesn't cover much. -No matching 401k and no stock options -Limited vacation and personal days. If you're using some of this time for snow days, you're really not going to have much time off left. -No good way to track vacation and benefits. Unless you're tallying everything on paper. -If you're a minute late into the office, your manager is going to make a big deal about it. But if you work late, not only are you not comped for that, but apparently that's a not a big deal. -$100 holiday bonus. -So many approvals for everything. Be prepared to go through multiple people just to submit paperwork. -Manual processes. No one should have to rely on Notepad to copy and paste things into a database. And if you're looking for automation or tools to be more efficient, look elsewhere...this doesn't exist here. -Meetings are useless. People go over info, but no one really takes it in, and it doesn't seem like people really care (they're only there because they have to be) -Performance reviews are a joke. -Not creative when it comes to promoting the product or hosting events...try some new tactics to get people's attention -Product pricing makes no sense and sales people don't get commission -People with working visas are basically stuck at an unhappy place. -Awkward and limited communication. Talking to people face-to-face is preferable over emailing or paging someone on a phone. Also, transparency helps to let people know what's going on.

Explore other reviews about COMSOL

5.0
Sep 2, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Pays well. Foster's cooperation and self-learning and -development. Flexible upon request at times. Great work/life balance.

Cons

Does not have hybrid or work from home policies.

1.0
Jul 29, 2025
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

• The Burlington office is in a good location near a mall, highways, and restaurants/food options. Very walkable area.

Cons

• Nepotism, nepotism, nepotism: if you're not a part of the CEO's family, your opinions and ideas don't matter. Growth is stagnant and only becomes available when others quit or get fired, and they realize it's cheaper to pile more work on you (not managers though) than hire more employees. • Management is embarrassingly unqualified, rude, and terrible at communication: they talk down to you while pretending to want your opinion, and will happily take credit for the positive side of projects, and blame you for the negative. No accountability exists for them and how poorly they treat their teams. • Cheap: pay is low compared to similar positions. No holiday bonuses and terrible benefits packages. Only 1 catered lunch a month. • No remote work, unless you're a manager and decide you want to stay home with your kids or don't feel good. Bad weather? Too bad. Snowstorms? Too bad. Otherwise, prepare to waste your PTO due to the outdated beliefs of this company. • Company rules are continuously made-up and goalposts are moved to please egos. • HR is a nonexistent, don't bother reporting anything private to them or it'll be the newest office gossip. COMSOL is a company that has all the potential, but continuously shoots itself in the foot with its egotistical, outdated view on work/life balance. It chokes out creativity and drive in the name of selfish management who can't admit when they're wrong. Their idea of "collaboration" is you wasting days making reports and drafts, just for management to tell you it's wrong, not needed, or they take full credit for it. In short, don't work for this company, you're better off anywhere else, it's not worth the mental health black hole management will throw you in. If you do apply here, treat COMSOL as a resume filler and get out before the 3 year mark. The company's not worth much else.

4
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