MathWorks reviews

3 words: meetings, politics, promotions. Meetings: There are way too many. If you're the type of person (like me) who needs hours upon hours to concentrate and focus and think big thoughts in order to contribute well, then you'll find it difficult to do that in this environment without staying after normal working hours to do so. Politics: The way our reviews are organized require consensus building amongst managers. Our fate is determined not just by our direct manager, but by managers who we may have interacted with only a few times during the year. In my view, this breeds territoriality and rather petty bickering. People will go behind your back and above your level....and they will get attention because they're the squeaky wheel. Promotions: I don't believe a single person in my group of ~30 has been promoted within the last 5 years. The economy was given as the reason previously, but that excuse can only last so long. Yes, we are lucky to have jobs. However, the lack of a well-defined career path is I believe fundamentally hypocritical at an organization which is hierarchical yet also holds the core value of "respect and invest." What ends up happening is that you'll be expected to work at a higher level of excellence, but ultimately never attain a higher level in the organization.

The company is full of slogans about their values that are largely absent in practice. The review process is political and highly unfair. People stick around for decades and do next to nothing. They are promoted based on who they know. The biggest problem is that this environment is detached from the real world of software development. The skill set you pick up may not be what others need. In short you have to drink the kool-aid and sing the company song otherwise you are in trouble.