Pros
When I started here 10 years ago I was pleasantly surprised by the great work environment: Respect; knowledge; creativity; warmth…people cared. Maybe the buildings were old and the offices were not spectacular, but people were always happy to come to work each day, and all of us tried to do absolutely the best. I was always proud to say that I work for SLAC. • Support cutting-edge science. • Multicultural and international environment. • Decent salary and great benefits. • A chance to work with and know exceptional, visionary scientists from all over the world. Unfortunately, these positives have steadily declined since then.
Cons
The lab has experienced changes in management and strategy in the last few years. The new LCLS management behaves like a club for feudal lords. The knowledge and experience of their serfs is not considered or appreciated. “Yes, sir” is the only right response because your personal vision and opinion is prohibited. To maintain a wide gap between upper management and the workers, they hire middle management whose qualifications are not important so long as they embrace double standards and manipulation, while honesty is viewed as a weakness. Communication between workers is not encouraged, and some office workers are instructed not to talk to people from other departments. The climate of fear and intimidation motivates workers to do the absolute minimum required by their job description because they feel any more or less is too risky. All strategic decisions are made behind closed doors, and then proclaimed as a directive that you need to act positive about. You cannot express any concerns about the decisions.