Kitware reviews

3.3

52% would recommend to a friend

(55 total reviews)

Lisa Avilla

48% approve of CEO

41% positive business outlook

Kitware has an employee rating of 3.3 out of 5 stars, based on 55 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Kitware employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Information Technology industry (3.9 stars).

Reviews by job title

55 reviews
1.0
Jun 30, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

They offer remote work and hire people without prior experience.

Cons

Kitware recently laid off some of their most tenured and talented senior employees. As a junior SWE it was sad to watch and hear about. There was at least one person I would have kept, even if it meant cutting three others to keep them. It was clear to me that no one who had an understanding of our jobs was involved in selecting who would be cut and that higher ups were just looking at a spreadsheet to see how much in expenses they could shave off so that they could keep their bonuses. It means nothing to them that the company lost someone with domain knowledge or that they will have to pay twice in a few months to meet deadlines. It was baffling to see how they decided to let go of some of our best developers and keep the worst. I don’t see the point of working at a company that lays off high performers. It tells me that I should look elsewhere for growth opportunities.

avatar
Kitware Response
1y
Unfortunately, due to a sudden, unforeseen major change to our project funding, we had to make the difficult decision to reduce our workforce by 11 employees in the U.S. We are committed to helping these individuals through this process by providing a two week notice period, a severance package, resume review and interview coaching, recommendation letters and references. Kitware has always been and will continue to be an employee-centric company. We did not take this step lightly, and it was only after determining that no other solution existed. The cancellation of two active contracts by a federal agency has never happened in Kitware’s 26-year history. Despite this unwelcome challenge, we are a strong company with a highly skilled team of experts. Our vision and our passion to make the world a safer, healthier, better-informed place remains unchanged.
1.0
Sep 14, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Interesting and impactful projects - Healthy work-life balance - Bright and collaborative colleagues - Strong emphasis on software quality and best practices

Cons

Kitware was unable to weather even a brief "funding winter" without resorting to poorly handled layoffs: - The news of layoffs is delivered by the CEO and HR director, not your team lead or manager. The whole process feels impersonal and bureaucratic, as though names were pulled from a spreadsheet. Proper communication should have come from your direct manager or lead. - Employees are given only two weeks' notice, and if you're on an H1B visa, good luck avoiding deportation after being laid off. While I’m not on an H1B, I find this deeply concerning for those affected. - The CEO gaslights by misleadingly claiming in a company-wide email that "performance" was a factor in deciding who to lay off, which clearly wasn’t the case when you look at the list. Many of the staff members affected were experienced and valuable, but likely deemed too expensive. - They don’t initially disclose who else was laid off, leaving people to figure it out on their own, which felt isolating and unfair. Eventually, they had to announce the names a week later, proving how poorly thought out the whole process was.

1.0
Apr 18, 2020
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Small company with little office political issues.

Cons

Government-based projects are very sensitive. No good researchers at all and they have no core technology when compared with other companies. Nobody can really guide you and you have to be self-driven to be successful.

Viewing 1 - 3 of 55 Reviews

Glassdoor has 75 Kitware reviews submitted anonymously by Kitware employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Kitware is right for you.