NOV reviews

3.5

63% would recommend to a friend

(3,241 total reviews)

Clay C. Williams

69% approve of CEO

53% positive business outlook

NOV has an employee rating of 3.5 out of 5 stars, based on 3,241 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The NOV employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Energy, Mining & Utilities industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

3K reviews
2.0
Nov 12, 2012

Disappointing but potential in other divisions

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

If you can get into a division that encourages growth, tuition reimbursement, continuous training - your okay...there are some divisions that do not participate nor encourage their employees to take advantage of NOV's offerings...

Cons

Due to NOV constantly buying other businesses - the businesses tend to not "adapt" to the structure of the organization as a whole - every division is different - and with that - some divisions encourage growth while others are still antiquated (i.e. stay in the position for 30+ years)

3.0
Nov 9, 2012

If you want to move up, you have to move out or know someone.

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

It's a big company that owns the oil field market.

Cons

You can see the trend in other reviews. Either the reviewer is young with little experience and likes NOV for the opportunity, or they're a bit older and complaining that you need to know someone to get advanced. NOV is the good ol' boy network on steroids. I worked for them for quite a few years before I finally got fed up and left. I also got several advancements, so this is not a sour grapes review. NOV's customers absolutely hate them, and will go to any other vendor to try to get parts and supplies, given the chance. This means that NOV will eventually go out of business, if they get even a modicum of competition. They have avoided this by buying the competition, so far. The products are over-priced and under-supported. Basically, the business model of NOV is to acquire a top-of-the-line company, put its leadership into a VP slot, and run off the experienced (read: higher-paid) engineers and designers then hire folks off the street or from their circle of friends to be the management group. They then run that product into the ground until their customers look elsewhere. If "elsewhere" starts to get any market foothold, then NOV buys them and repeats the process. This model cannot be sustained in the long run. I would expect to see NOV selling off assets when the next downturn happens in the oil patch. Their customers will buy elsewhere for less as soon as they have the time to shop around. Right now, there is no time to go elsewhere, so the "one-stop-shop" of NOV gets the whole bid. When money becomes on par with time for projects, NOV will lose out. When money is more valuable than time on projects, NOV will plummet in sales. It is just a matter of time. Part of the "other" this review asks for is the 6 month outlook. I selected "down," but only for the long-term outlook. I don't know if the next downturn will be in 6 months or a year, or more, but I do know that the oil patch goes through cycles, and only well-liked and customer-oriented companies make it through the downturns intact. NOV falls into neither category.

2.0
Nov 2, 2012

Pay is ok, Management in Canada not so much

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Flexibility and good work hours.

Cons

Management don't know what they are doing and run the business based on their bonus rather than what's good for the company. They all lack the knowledge and experience required to make this company successful.

Viewing 3133 - 3135 of 3,241 Reviews

Glassdoor has 3,853 NOV reviews submitted anonymously by NOV employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if NOV is right for you.