Everyone with "director" in their title has no accountability. - Senior Scientist Ultragenyx Employee Review

2.0
Jun 2, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Free lunch once a week - Resources for new instruments

Cons

I've seen the entire automation team leave within a couple of weeks, leaving $1,000,000 worth of equipment abandoned for over a year. As far as I know, the Sr dir in charge of automation suffered no reprocussions. I told an E dir about the unscrupulous behavior of an A dir, which cost the company $100,000. Rather than thanking me for bringing this to their attention, they tried to defend the unscrupulous behavior and canned me instead. I got the impression that everyone in a leadership position knows something the shareholders don't, and are costing toward the inevitable trainwreck.

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Ultragenyx Response
1y
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experience. If you would like to discuss your time at Ultragenyx further with our team, feel free to email EmployeeRelations@ultragenyx.com. We appreciate all input and work hard to provide the best experience for every employee. We wish you all the best. Thank you!

Explore other reviews about Ultragenyx

5.0
May 12, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great place with great people who are all pulling toward a common goal of bringing therapies to market that will change people's lives

Cons

For a small company, decisions can take a while to make because everyone wants to be involved, and most people in centralized roles work across all of the different brands within the company.

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Ultragenyx Response
1mo
Thank you for your review and thoughtful feedback. We’re proud of the passion our teams bring to advancing therapies for patients, and we appreciate you sharing your perspective on how we work together. We’re glad to have you with us!
3.0
Jul 18, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good benefits and generally reasonable work-life balance.

Cons

In my experience, the organization had many layers of leadership (many VPs, Sr Directors and Directors), unclear decision-making authority, and frequently changing priorities, which sometimes slowed progress and weakened accountability. Considerable time was devoted to meetings, presentations, and strategy, but these activities did not always translate into measurable scientific outcomes. Hands-on scientists often appeared to have limited influence over technical decisions. Leadership also seemed to favor established hypotheses, outsourcing, and new biology-focused pilot studies over investing in innovative platform technologies that could address multiple diseases. Alternative perspectives and technical concerns did not always receive sufficient consideration. Career advancement appeared more accessible to highly visible employees with strong networking and presentation skills than to those contributing primarily through laboratory and technical work. While the benefits and work-life balance were positive, I would have valued clearer priorities, greater scientific openness, and stronger support for hands-on contributors.

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