Clarity of mission is key to building a great place to work, according to Amanda Valentino, our Head of Talent Acquisition and Global Mobility. Learn why we were named #1 on Biospace’s “2017 Ideal Employer" list. http://glassdoor.com/slink.htm?key=vQiZ7
Genentech Overview
South San Francisco, CA
10000+ employees
1976
Subsidiary or Business Segment
Biotech & Pharmaceuticals
$10+ billion (USD) per year
Joining Genentech means being part of a tradition of inquiry that will change the world. It means embracing our failures as much as our successes. It requires a willingness to look beyond the edge of what's possible. And a focus on doing the day-to-day work that ... Read more
Glassdoor Awards
Company Updates
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What does a scientist look like? Marlena Jackson, a Scientific Researcher at Genentech, is shifting the paradigm by inspiring young girls in her community to pursue careers in STEM. http://glassdoor.com/slink.htm?key=vQELQ
Genentech Video
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Genentech – Why Work For Us?
A place that’s a pioneer in its own industry. Where diversity drives innovative solutions for patients. Where material rewards are matched by the meaning that comes from making a difference for millions. When you work at Genentech, you'll come to understand that helping to make history by changing the course of medicine requires inspiration that can only come from a combined commitment to passion, purpose, and people.
Passion
We invented biotechnology. And we’re driven to do it again, every day. The passion that drives us is the belief that the science of life — biology — holds the keys to solving life's toughest health challenges. Innovative science is the basis of our existence and the foundation for our future. We approach opportunities and challenges with an open mind and break new ground by breaking with convention. And, while we recognize that failure is a possible outcome, we focus on long-term success and the difference we make in the lives of patients.
Purpose
Doing your job well positively impacts the lives of millions of patients. This is our purpose. Each individual patient inspires our researchers to do groundbreaking science. Their stories motivate us all to continue developing new treatment options for people with serious or life-threatening diseases. It's the tireless mother who gives her kids 100 percent while hiding the pain from rheumatoid arthritis. It's a young boy coming to grips with cystic fibrosis. It's a new grandfather who just learned he has stage IV colon cancer. These are the people who remind us of what we do and why — day after day.
People
Our one-of-a-kind culture is built on diversity, dedication, and celebration. We bring together the most talented employees we can find, and then we give them room to be themselves. By encouraging diversity in all its forms — thought, skill, experience, culture and style — we arrive at new ways of doing things. Because it’s this type of environment that ensures employees can make their greatest contributions to Genentech and, most importantly, to our patients.
Join a team that lives to improve lives.
At Genentech, we’re devoted to doing now what patients need next. And while that means employing some of the greatest minds in biotech, there’s much more to the story. Because everything that every Genentech employee does stands to make a difference for millions of patients.
Scientists and Research Associates
You want your work to make a real difference to patients. And that’s what you’ll do here – but you’ll embrace every step along the way. Because at Genentech, we know it’s daily efforts that defy dead ends. It’s small, unassuming progress that leads to something big. So if you’re dedicated to the journey, this is the place for you.
Join more than 1,200 research scientists and 100 post-docs who combine strong basic research with an applied focus on translational research to bring medicines to patients as quickly as possible. You’ll be part of a creative and active scientific community bolstered by meaningful outcomes for patients, and achievements that include:
- 11,300+ patents secured worldwide and 9,000 pending applications
- More than 40 molecules in phase I, II and III clinical trials across oncology, immunology, neuroscience, metabolism, infectious disease, and ophthalmology
- 80 podium presentations and 120 posters at major international medical conferences
- 9 National Academy of Sciences members in scientific leadership positions
- 500+ publications in peer-reviewed journals, including Science, Nature, and Cell, in 2014 alone
Technical Development, Engineering, Manufacturing & Quality Professionals:
Improving the quality of millions of lives demands a commitment to manufacturing quality. So our Pharma Technical (PT) operations group works to ensure every dose of every medicine meets our standard.
Working in a supportive environment, built on a strong safety culture and a hunger for continuous improvement, your daily efforts will help the world’s largest supplier of biologics bring 92 product families to patients in need.
Sales and Marketing Professionals
A medicine can only work if patients know about it. So every detail of shaping a medicine’s brand strategy matters to our Sales and Marketing team.
It’s a team of diverse individuals who deliver strategic business direction from research all the way through to development and commercialization. And it’s the perfect place for anyone who wants to accelerate their career, attain greater professional visibility, and partner with senior leadership to make a difference on a global stage.
Corporate Professionals
You may not be a scientist but you’re still driven by the desire to help millions of people struggling with unmet medical needs. Genentech’s corporate groups offer countless opportunities to do just that:
- Site Services: Great site management makes great work possible. We foster a forward-thinking, sustainable environment — all in support of the science that touches millions.
- Human Resources: Cultivating the talent behind the science is what we’re all about. And we do it by continually finding new ways to help people work better while offering incomparable benefits and professional enrichment.
- Corporate Relations: We’re defining the future of communications in biotech and beyond. Our work is about more than marketing. It’s about making a difference by leveraging imagination, collaboration, and creativity to build a global brand.
- Finance: We’re fueling the fight against the world’s most formidable diseases by applying a data-driven approach to arrive at financial insights that make a difference.
- Pharma Informatics: Developing unprecedented system innovations is at the heart of what we do – we keep every system running better, to support the work that’s helping patients get better.
- Legal: It takes diverse legal minds to make much-needed medicine a reality, shaping the future by shaping policy. This collegial, collaborative team is guiding cutting-edge science through the legal landscape, and changing lives in the process.
- Healthcare Compliance: At Genentech, compliance is part of everyone’s job, but specialists in this area play a critical role in business performance and operations by creating and managing effective policies.
Hiring at Genentech: How We Get To Know You
At Genentech, we seek out passionate people with the drive to help solve the world's most challenging medical conditions. We know our employees are integral to our success. We have created a hiring process that allows us to get to know you and you to know us. We start by clearly defining needs and job criteria. Here's what you can expect next...
Cross-functional collaborations, business-critical projects, fun activities, welcoming colleagues, and supportive managers — you’ve just found a great place to gain real world experience. But Genentech is also a place that embraces your passion to make the world better by changing millions of lives.
You’ll encounter an extraordinary experience defined by a wealth of opportunity and fresh perspectives as you work alongside tomorrow’s talent at an innovative and diverse global organization. Whether you join Genentech as an intern or co-op or become a full-time employee after graduating, you’ll find numerous opportunities to showcase your ideas and contribute to the meaningful work being done every day.
Interns
Get ready to grow through business-critical projects that directly impact Genentech and the patients we serve. Networking, social events, career development panels, and the VP Lunch and Learn speaker series round out the internship experience. It’s a super-charged summer that ends with a presentation of your project findings to senior management and a chance to be considered for a full-time role.
Co-ops
Hands-on industry training that supplements your education is at the heart of our co-op program, designed for students currently enrolled in a related academic field. Over the course of six to 12 months, you’ll gain expert knowledge and forge valuable connections.
New Grads
Put your Bachelor of Science in engineering, biological sciences, chemistry, logistics, operations or supply chain management to work. Full-time opportunities for new grads are generally available through the Operations Rotation Development Program (ORDP) and the Process Development Rotation Program (PDRP).
MBA Students & New Grads
Gain the firsthand business experience that places you at the forefront of the biotechnology industry. Join high-caliber MBA talent at Genentech for an intense 12-week opportunity defined by hands-on work in a fast-paced environment. We look for candidates who have prior work experience in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical or healthcare industries most often in sales and marketing, operations, consulting or finance.
If you recently graduated, then a Genentech Rotation Program will expose you to a range of areas while helping you make a smooth transition from the classroom to life at Genentech. Ideally, you’ll have earned an MB or a Master of Science in engineering, biological sciences, chemistry, logistics, operations, or supply chain management.
The people at Genentech are a diverse community, bringing unique perspectives and experiences that fuel our innovation and contribute to our unique culture. Ultimately, everything that every Genentech employee does stands to make a difference for millions of patients.
Because at the end of the day, it’s our mindset, our interactions, our leaders that really make the difference by taking a genuine interest in the people we encounter every day, regardless of whether they are a full time or part time employee, an intern or co-op, a contractor or a consultant. We’re all working together to make a difference for patients and our inclusive culture will enable us to do this even more effectively.
We have learned a lot from both our Glassdoor reviews and our workforce. Our continued focus is to create an environment that allows our workforce to do their best work by always reviewing our policies and guidelines. With that said, we are happy to announce that our contingent workforce policies and guidelines have been changed this year, and any contingent worker can learn about these enhancements from their manager.
Our contingent workforce plays an important role in achieving our mission. Our intent is to provide an opportunity for every individual in our contingent workforce to experience a great place where they can do their best work.
Introducing John and Aileen, contingent workers in Human Resources, in part 1 of our Q&A series:
DNA Groups:
Strong corporate communities flourish when employees feel connected to their work, to Genentech, and to its surrounding neighborhoods. Genentech is committed to building and maintaining strong ties to diverse organizations in order to strengthen our company and the communities, in which we live, work and conduct business. DNA groups provide great opportunities for employees at all levels of the company to build leadership; management and professional development skills that can help them advance in their careers at Genentech.
- AAIB - African Americans in Biotechnology
- FACT - Filipino Americans Coming Together @ Genentech
- gPRIDE
- gSpectrum
- GVDT - Genentech Veterans Diversity Team
- GWP - Genentech Women Professionals
- Medley - MultiCultural Group
- NextGen - Developing the Next Generation of Leaders
- SANG - South Asian Network @ Genentech
- STAGES - Strengthening Ties Across Generations
- VIDA - Latino Professionals @ Genentech
Genentech Clubs:
Genentech Clubs are groups of employees interested in a specific topic who come together periodically to share interests.
Dixon:
- Dixon Gardening Club
- The Yoga Club
Field:
- Helix Hustlers Walking Club
Kentucky:
- Paddle Club
Vacaville:
- Bowling Club
- Cropping
- Cycling Club
- Genophiles
- Green Genes
- Hockey Club
- Photography Club
- Scrapbooking Club
- Soccer Club
- Softball Club
- STRIDE
- Women’s Polynesian Club
South San Francisco:
- Amateur Radio Club
- Badminton Club
- Bicycle Club
- Caroler’s Club
- Cat Club
- Climbing Club
- Dog Club
- Electric Vehicle Club
- Fly Fishing and Conservation
- Gardening Club
- Genentech Automobile Society (G.A.S.)
- Genentech Board and Card Game Enthusiasts League (gBACGEL)
- Golf Club
- Green Genes Team
- Hockey Club
- Hungry Hippos Club
- Opera and Classic Music Club
- Outdoor Club
- PhotoGENEic
- Rowing Club
- Running Club
- Skateboard Club
- Ski & Snowboard Club
- Soccer Club
- Table Tennis Club
- The Volunteer Gene
- Tinkerers Club
- Toastmasters
- Travel and Travel Photography
- Tri Club
- Visual Arts Club
Genentech Reviews
Genentech1429Recommend to a friend
Approve of CEO
Bill Anderson
49 Ratings
- Featured Review
Helpful (6)
![Genentech Logo]()
"Great place to work"
StarStarStarStarStar- Work/Life Balance
- Culture & Values
- Career Opportunities
- Comp & Benefits
- Senior Management
RecommendsPositive OutlookNo opinion of CEOI have been working at Genentech full-time (More than 3 years)
Pros
Flexibility in working hours and working from home, employee focus, good benefits, nice people with a good pipeline. It is work hard and party hard atmosphere
Cons
Flat structure, no proper pathway to move to next level, many processes to follow, one tends to get lost in the process requirements that becomes convoluted every year
Genentech 2017-04-07 16:58 PDT
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Genentech Interviews
Experience
Experience
68%
20%
11%
Getting an Interview
Getting an Interview
39%
21%
15%
7
6
4
3
Difficulty
3.1
Average- Featured Interview
Helpful (32)
No OfferNeutral ExperienceDifficult InterviewGenentech 2016-08-16 10:45 PDTApplication
I applied online. The process took 3+ months. I interviewed at Genentech.
Interview
If you are interviewing for roles at Genentech, buckle up and be prepared for a very lengthy process. There is no hurry on their end and I would chalk that up to the company's reputation for being a top employer in the area. I had several phone interviews before getting to the onsite interview with several weeks of waiting in between.
Phone interviews: First interview was weird because it's a third party interviewer that asks a preset list of questions and you can hear her typing up your answers. It's strange and impersonal. Another phone interview was with someone not even working with the team (former employee) and asking another list of questions but at least this one was more personable. You don't get much value since they don't work on the team and you have no clue who the hiring managers are. It's pretty vague up until this point. Questions focused on your experience and ability with strategy and analysis.
Onsite interviews: Prepare to be there for the full day. It's long,it's grueling and you meet many people. They all ask the same questions, mainly behavioral. They want to know how you are able to work in teams, cope with difficult people/situations, prioritize tasks, etc. I found this to be strange since the only opportunity to showcase your analytical ability is in the case study of which is clearly a graph that only internal people can understand. Case study would have been better if you had a few minutes by yourself to digest it before discussing it. The other interesting component to the interview is the presentation. They ask you to prepare a presentation on a topic of your choice but it should showcase your strategy and analytical abilities. You present to people you interviewed with. The hardest part is that you are presenting at the end of the day when you're dog tired from talking to 10 other people.
Overall I would say the experience was good to have under my belt. With the fight for talent in the area I wonder if they lose people for having such a prolonged process. You'll find yourself having to constantly follow up between rounds. While everyone was very nice and friendly, I questioned their setup while I was there. Like someone else pointed out here on Glassdoor, everyone seems to be in an office which felt very siloed and not team oriented. Yet most questions focused on your ability to work in teams.The atmosphere was also dead quiet and not buzzing with activity as I have seen in other companies. This may work for some but it is something to think about whether this is the type of culture you want to be in. It is clear they have a hard time finding people for these roles (they are constantly reposting the job) and I think it's due to their interview process and style. Maybe it's time to try something new.Interview Questions
- Lots of behavioral questions - every interviewer will ask this. Be prepared with stories (STAR format) to address topics on how you work in teams, handle difficult situations and people, how you handle influence others that don't report to you, etc. There is one case study which you can't prepare for. Most of the interviews is smoke and mirrors - the interview you need to ace is the case study. Having one case study be the major data point is a bit ridiculous. I would say that if this is the most important criteria the team should think about having multiple case studies to give a better picture on a person's ability and focus less on the behavioral questions. Answer Question
Genentech Awards & Accolades
- The 50 Best Places to Work for New Dads, Fatherly.com, 2015
- 100 Best Companies to Work For, Fortune Magazine, 2015
- Top 50 Employers, Minority Engineer Magazine, 2015
- Best Places to Work (Large), Glassdoor, 2015
- 44 Healthiest Companies to Work For in America, Greatist.com, 2014
Work at Genentech? Share Your Experiences
