My experience at Ormat was deeply disappointing and ultimately unsustainable, largely due to structural and cultural issues within the organization.
One example is how outdated and inefficient many internal processes are. Even for legitimate work-related expenses — such as field travel, training, or operational needs — employees are often expected to use their personal credit cards instead of a company card. Reimbursement then requires multiple layers of approvals across departments and can move extremely slowly. In practice, this means employees can end up carrying large expenses and even paying credit card interest before the company reimburses them, which is unreasonable for a professional organization of this size.
The workplace culture is another serious concern. The environment can feel very closed and resistant to multicultural perspectives, despite the company promoting diversity and inclusion initiatives on paper. Numerous training sessions emphasize these values, but in reality many employees — including some managers — openly express frustration with those programs and dismiss them. In day-to-day interactions this sometimes translates into gossip, whispering about colleagues, and behaviors that can make certain employees feel isolated or targeted.
In my experience and from what I observed among colleagues, gossip and internal politics are widespread, and issues involving disrespectful behavior are often minimized or ignored rather than addressed constructively. Instead of acknowledging cultural or management problems, employees who struggle in this environment may simply be labeled as “not a good fit.”
Turnover is also very high. Many talented people leave the company after relatively short periods, and departures can be chaotic. Several former colleagues I worked with left under difficult circumstances, and the organization does little to reflect on why people are leaving.
Overall, the company appears far more focused on protecting itself internally than on building a supportive, modern workplace where employees can succeed.
