Positive culture changes and integration over the last year - Engineering Manager Novanta Employee Review

5.0
Apr 1, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Very good colleague support system. Great benefits and pay. A fair leadership team that listens to ideas. Development opportunities are seen often for the first time since I’ve been at Novanta. Smart business harmonizations over the last several months that have led to skill development and promotions for many of my Engineering colleagues. Significant increase in communication and direction even though the business unit doesn’t have a General Manager.

Cons

Corporate programs come off misaligned with the business unit. Centers of expertise, like supply chain, have expectations that we will likely not reach. Sometimes the leadership in the business unit doesn’t push back when unfair things are requested from teams that are understaffed as it is.

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Novanta Response
2y
We’re glad to hear you’ve had such a positive experience at Novanta and have noticed the effort we’ve put into making the organization a great place to work. Communication and transparency will help support our long-term growth as an organization, and we hear you, you haven’t heard as much from us the past few weeks as you would have liked. There’s so much going on behind the scenes and this is a great reminder for us to keep the team abreast of all initiatives, big and small. If you ever have concerns about what’s requested from your team, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your manager. They’re equipped to help guide you through any challenge you may be experiencing and can offer solutions that best fit the needs of your team. We love to know you’re interested in participating in KAIZEN workshops and believe your experience and expertise can help us improve our current processes. Please reach out to your manager or HR Partner - they’ll be able to walk you through expectations and next steps.

Explore other reviews about Novanta

5.0
Jun 26, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Onboarding experience, clear company vision and strategy, employee guidance, communication, product catalog & industry diversification, PTO policy, work-life balance

Cons

No WFH hardware setup/checklist, no internal resource showing a product tree of all major product types (by site/BU)

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Novanta Response
3w
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We’re pleased to hear that your onboarding, work-life balance, communication, and overall introduction to Novanta have made a positive impression during your first year with the company. We also appreciate your thoughtful suggestions. Helping new employees understand the products they support, how they make an impact, and our broader portfolio is an important part of creating a successful onboarding experience. As we continue to enhance our onboarding programs, feedback like yours helps us identify opportunities to provide additional resources and deeper product education to help employees build confidence and connect the work they do to our broader business. Thank you again for your feedback and for being part of the Novanta team. We wish you continued success as you grow your career with us.
4.0
Apr 1, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

It’s rare to find a company where you truly feel like you belong, and while no workplace is perfect, Novanta’s strengths far outweigh its shortcomings. What stood out most was their onboarding and training process — structured, thorough, and genuinely supportive for new employees. Day-to-day operations are well-organized, which makes it easier to do your best work, even though there’s always room for continued improvement. The benefits package is hard to beat — 5% 401K match, 16 PTOs, HSA/FSA, and comprehensive health/vision/dental coverage. The flexibility to work from home, especially at the manager level, shows the company values work-life balance. The company events and volunteer activities are a highlight — keep those coming! They go a long way in building a sense of community and culture. Overall, Novanta is a place where people are set up to succeed. I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a stable, organized, and people-focused company.

Cons

One area for improvement would be transparency around organizational changes. There were instances of unexpected layoffs in certain departments without much advance notice, which understandably affected morale and trust. More proactive communication during times of restructuring would go a long way in maintaining employee confidence.

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Novanta Response
3mo
Thank you for taking the time to share such a thoughtful and balanced review. We’re pleased to hear that your experience reflected a strong sense of belonging, effective onboarding, and a well-structured environment that supports people in doing their best work. It’s also great to see recognition of our benefits, flexibility, and the role that team events and volunteer efforts play in building a connected culture – those are all intentional investments we have made in building a great workplace culture. As a growing, global company, we continuously evolve to align with market opportunities and long-term priorities. That includes ensuring we have the right structure, capabilities, and communication approaches in place to support our teams through change. We regularly communicate with employees through daily posts on the Collaboration Hub, our intranet, weekly email newsletter, and quarterly all-employee town halls where employees can ask questions and get answers. We appreciate your suggestions about career development and recognition. Enabling employees to grow and ensuring contributions are visible remain important areas of focus as we continue to scale. Novanta University offers a variety of on-demand courses so employees can continue to learn and grow. We also encourage all employees to create their own individual development plan (IDP) and discuss it with their manager so they can continue to progress in their career. To further promote career development, we have recently made enhancements to our performance management process which strengthens performance goal attainment by having quarterly development meetings with your manager. Some sites have a Values Champion Recognition program that allows peer to peer recognition for those who go above and beyond. We believe in the value of recognition and agree with you that sometimes just a simple “Thank you” or “I appreciate you” can go a long way! Thank you again for your contributions during your time at Novanta, and we wish you continued success.
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