Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Staff Scientist Reviews | Glassdoor
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Reviews
Companies
  • Jobs
  • Companies
  • Salaries
  • Interviews

    Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Staff Scientist Reviews

    Updated December 4, 2018
    8 reviews

    Filter

    Filter

    Staff Scientist
    4.3
    StarStarStarStarStar
    Rating TrendsRating Trends
    Recommend to a friend
    Approve of CEO
    Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Director Bill Goldstein
    Bill Goldstein
    5 Ratings

    Employee Reviews

    Sort: PopularRatingDate
    Pros

    • "Work life balance is the biggest advantage" (in 113 reviews)

    • "I see the lab working hard to be a great place to work, which it is" (in 35 reviews)

    Cons

    • "Being a government contractor does mean there is a lot of red tape" (in 40 reviews)

    • "Of course, the cost of living in the Bay Area makes the 'good' salaries not reach as far" (in 16 reviews)

    More Pros and Cons

    1. "Staff Scientist"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 8 years)

      Pros

      work/life balance, matrix team work

      Cons

      The overhead is too high.

    2. "Excellent place for a CAREER"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 5 years)

      Pros

      As a scientist at the Lab, I have had a range of 'jobs,' all interesting and relevant to the needs of the country. I have done some great research and also worked in a more applied/operational area. My work life balance is pretty great and teamwork has been a total plus within the groups I have been a part of. The benefits are excellent as well.

      Cons

      While pay is good, the process to increase your pay is in small steps, so you have to take the long view regarding your salary trajectory. Of course, the cost of living in the Bay Area makes the 'good' salaries not reach as far. There is the bureaucracy associated with working at a national lab, of course, but I have adjusted to that as a necessary evil. Also, the priorities of sponsors can sometimes change faster than we are able to which means you can end up being tasked with a lot of short turnaround offshoot projects that are aimed to impress sponsors and bring in more money. These are not always effective.

      Advice to Management

      Continue the work toward making the Lab a flexible, diverse, and welcoming work environment. The changes are being felt around the lab and they are welcomed.

      3. Join the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory team
      See Our Latest Jobs

    3. "Staff Scientist"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 5 years)

      Pros

      challenging, important work in the national interest

      Cons

      high pressure, short deadlines, easy to get over subscribed

    4. Helpful (2)

      "Salaries"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist
      Doesn't Recommend
      Negative Outlook
      Disapproves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 10 years)

      Pros

      Need to think hard to find a good reason. As a scientist, I can tell that science is treated arbitrarily, no evaluation takes place, and ranking and salary increases are determined solely by the management. Nothing good as far as I am concerned.

      Cons

      Non-existing morale, arbitrary treatment of scientists, suppressing debate, funding given on the basis of personal acquaintance and need of funding rather than worth of ideas, Also see above.

      Advice to Management

      The management displays a complete lack of honor in handling scientific work. It is completely disinterested in the quality of the science especially in the area of stockpile stewardship. Advice? Turn it 180 degrees.

      Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Response

      Feb 23, 2018 – Employee Relations Program Leader

      Thank you for providing your feedback. At LLNL, we highly value our scientists and all of the Laboratory community, as our mission is to strengthen the nation’s security through development and... More

    5. Helpful (1)

      "Excellent Career Opportunity"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 3 years)

      Pros

      - The Lab works at the frontier of technological and scientific innovation. As such, the work can be extremely challenging, but very rewarding at the same time.
       - Work/life flexibility is excellent and the benefits are superior to anything I have seen in industry.
       - Some of the brightest minds in the world work at this facility, so there is always something to learn from someone and there are always interesting things happening.

      Cons

      - Given the nature of the work, the performance expectations from management and sponsors are extremely high. This results in a very stressful work environment.
       - Things move on the geologic timescale at this facility, so sometimes it can take much longer to accomplish things than desired.

      Advice to Management

      - The management should work more closely with new employees to help them become acclimated to the laboratory missions, structure, and culture.

    6. Helpful (1)

      "Staff Scientist"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Doesn't Recommend
      Neutral Outlook

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 10 years)

      Pros

      multidisciplinary research and development, training opportunities, national security mission

      Cons

      bureaucratic, leadership lacks long-term vision,

    7. Helpful (5)

      "Wonderful place to work. Best of the DOE national laboratories"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Neutral Outlook
      No opinion of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 10 years)

      Pros

      Absolutely wonderful location in the San Francisco bay area, RELATIVELY affordable to live near by (in Livermore), and lots of opportunities to work on really unique and interesting projects. The people you meet there are absolutely the best part about working at a DOE national lab. Lots of employee activities through the abundant networking groups.

      Cons

      Lots of regulations and rules to follow. Compensation is very slow to respond to added responsibility. And if you have to deal with Washington DC, the politics might be more than some people can handle.

      Advice to Management

      Try to find what people are good at and focus them on that. Too many good scientists are bad managers. Promotion to management should be because of management aptitude, not because of technical achievement.

    8. Helpful (3)

      "Changing times at the lab and national interests in science"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Staff Scientist in Livermore, CA
      Doesn't Recommend
      Negative Outlook
      No opinion of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 8 years)

      Pros

      The ability to do "big" science and collaborate with high quality scientists

      Cons

      Stifling restrictions that have increased costs and crippled the lab's personnel from executing their job.

      Advice to Management

      Figure it out. The lab's productivity and moral have been on a downward spiral. The attrition rate of high quality scientists is a clear signal that things need to be desperately change. Instead looking to Washington for answers, which will all know is pointless, find innovative solutions to cut cost and navigate DOE regulations to boost productivity.