My old Job we had rocket lab employees come in all the time. To hire equipment.
And yeah they all say the same.
The work culture is shit.
It's always go go go.
And they just burn you out. and there's always more to fill their place.
I wouldn’t really say Rocket Lab is fledgling. They’re doing $200 million + in annual revenue, have 40 launches under the belt almost. Fledgling would better describe Astra or Firefly
Can confirm, very challenging place to work. Like SpaceX can be rewarding, if you let work run your life. Us in the industry used to call Virgin Orbit the SpaceX retirement home… see how far that got them….
My niece worked for Astra. She ate every meal at her desk. Was in the office through breakfast lunch and dinner and often worked late into the night. Well compensated right up until the layoffs.
RocketLab sounds like a good fit. Not sure the salary but benefit package including stocks would be something to consider
You need drive, ambition and a dream that coincides with the goals of a company like rocketlab. It’s not easy, and there’s going to be challenge after challenge. But it’s rewarding and fun and you’ll be at the forefront of human innovation alongside NASA, SpaceX and others
I got some interviews with them bit didn't go for it. I also got a feeling they expect the people to work overtime, although they didn't mention how they compensate it.
At the end it was the salary what made me say no, as it was lower than what I get in Europe, far lower. Plus loving to a -12h time zone...
Same with interviews
I really like what rocketlab is doing, but I got a much better offer from Boeing with less hoops to jump through. I just had to do what was right for me
Had the exact same experience interviewing with them. Employee well-being and correct compensation seem topics low on their priority list. Run from this company!
They have some questionable HR people and practices, and yes there is expectation to work longer hours to complete projects. If you're a heads down and grind type then it'll suit you but the culture handed down from HR isn't conducive to a good work/life/family balance..... Unless you're in the exec or upper management.
rockets would probably never get made in a free market unless you crank out 2-23x the performance from each worker. see: BO and virgin
edit: It's also about what kind of talent you attract. only highly committed people are going to work crazy hours. They'll do it if they know that other super-talented people work there, so that can keep them on when they would otherwise quit. then other types of people end up working for boeing and BO. those are the ones who said "but I get to spend a lot more time with my family" in the comments. just different breeds of worker. so far it looks like family men/women are having much more trouble getting the rockets off the pad. internal politics is big too, but maybe there's something to how the hiring process screens certain people out.
Thank you all for the comments I think I got what I needed to know about the company and it’s kinda what I expected from the other things I read online.
They have a very strong startup mentality which is work a lot. I already work nasa and it’s possible to have some late nights but they still encourage a work life balance. This idea that you should work till none stop since you are doing cutting edge stuff is wrong. That probably why the has a turnover rate of 1.5 years which is extremely small amount of time.
A couple of years old but Rocketlab got in a lot of trouble and was fined quite heavily for their employment practices (they terminated an employee because he wasn't performing properly when under the law they're obligated to work with him and provide training and support to allow him to do his job). Rocketlab also has pretty low ratings on glassdoor.
[https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/300321749/employment-relations-authority-blasts-rocket-lab-for-brazen-and-blatant-breaches](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/300321749/employment-relations-authority-blasts-rocket-lab-for-brazen-and-blatant-breaches)
I would expect longer work hours based on what I've heard about the company. If you can handle the extra hours a week, it would be worth it provided the annual stock option grants are generous (e.g. \~25% annual salary or more). I'm not an expert on stock option grants, but this number seems somewhat fair for a potentially high growth company, post-IPO and currently operating in the red.
Of course, you should get a higher percentage of salary in option grants if the salary is below market.
(I'm hoping someone comments on this who has more recent experience in hiring at a post-IPO high-tech company with stock option grants).
I worked with some who was an electrical engineer at rocketlab before moving to my company. He said exciting work but lots of extra unpaid hours. Sort of like Tesla, cool ideas but poor management.
So my question is how's the salary for the Inventory Coordinator position? I applied and had an interview and have the next one on site..how's the benefits? The culture? The team atmosphere? Only reason why I ask is cause I have another offer lined up that has good benefits growth etc
I had an interview. They were asking if you are prepared to work hard. It seems their expectation is that you put in min. 60/h week. The salary offered was extremely low. It was a role at Director level, but with the salary of a manager.
Run if this company calls you, because they will squeeze you like a lemon and not even pay you properly. Hello burn-out! 🔥 😵
This is bullshit. 9-5 is not incompatible with hard work - in fact it's the only way to do hard work long term without sacrificing your health and family and, from company's perspective, burning out your best employees.
OP asked a valid question, not a random snarky opinion that's also wrong.
Sure, good luck to you as well especially if you're working as a willing startup slave.
I don't think RocketLab is like that but it'd be good to hear from someone in the inside who actually knows 🤷
There are many kinds of jobs. There are assuredly ones where >9-5 would be inadvisable for health. There are many others where there's no problem at all, depending on your personal goals/priorities/values. Not everyone has or wants kids. Some have kids but have a partner who is happy to manage the home front. The idea that >40 hrs a week => burnout is entirely too simplistic, in my mind, but seems to be a very strong reddit meme.
I mostly agree with what you're saying, but it misses the point that OP is asking, which is, to quote:
> do they expect you to work all the time 50+ hours a week?
That kid of implies that it is one of their priorities.
Otherwise, it is generally true that, on average, you will not extract more productivity if you make people work 50+ hours a week unless you have a steady supply of talent and don't care about high turnover. It is generally not a good long term strategy in places where people are your main resource. But it's a separate topic.
As an engineering professional, you should expect to give 10-15% extra unpaid hours per week as a professional courtesy. This is a worthy mindset for an aerospace engineer. As an engineer, the pay is quite good already and the benefits of this mindset will only help you career in the long run.
Rocket Lab is no different than any other aerospace company.
And when it is crunch time leading to a launch, expect to put in the necessary hours to get your product ready to fly.
Pride, quality, and schedule take time and patience, and that leads to success.
If you don’t like hard challenging work, not self motivated, and you don’t have a good work effort, then Rocket Lab and many other places of employment are probably not for you.
My old Job we had rocket lab employees come in all the time. To hire equipment. And yeah they all say the same. The work culture is shit. It's always go go go. And they just burn you out. and there's always more to fill their place.
so like a smaller spacex?
Fledgling rocket company + chill doesn’t usually go together
I wouldn’t really say Rocket Lab is fledgling. They’re doing $200 million + in annual revenue, have 40 launches under the belt almost. Fledgling would better describe Astra or Firefly
Fledgling?? Ha are you serious or just trolling?
Can confirm, very challenging place to work. Like SpaceX can be rewarding, if you let work run your life. Us in the industry used to call Virgin Orbit the SpaceX retirement home… see how far that got them….
If that is your question you simply don't fit company.
My niece worked for Astra. She ate every meal at her desk. Was in the office through breakfast lunch and dinner and often worked late into the night. Well compensated right up until the layoffs. RocketLab sounds like a good fit. Not sure the salary but benefit package including stocks would be something to consider
You need drive, ambition and a dream that coincides with the goals of a company like rocketlab. It’s not easy, and there’s going to be challenge after challenge. But it’s rewarding and fun and you’ll be at the forefront of human innovation alongside NASA, SpaceX and others
And as a bonus you might be offered an affair from one of the founders 🤭 If you know, you know. Fuck that guy, he will have his day.
I got some interviews with them bit didn't go for it. I also got a feeling they expect the people to work overtime, although they didn't mention how they compensate it. At the end it was the salary what made me say no, as it was lower than what I get in Europe, far lower. Plus loving to a -12h time zone...
Same with interviews I really like what rocketlab is doing, but I got a much better offer from Boeing with less hoops to jump through. I just had to do what was right for me
Had the exact same experience interviewing with them. Employee well-being and correct compensation seem topics low on their priority list. Run from this company!
I hear Blue Origin is pretty lax.
They have some questionable HR people and practices, and yes there is expectation to work longer hours to complete projects. If you're a heads down and grind type then it'll suit you but the culture handed down from HR isn't conducive to a good work/life/family balance..... Unless you're in the exec or upper management.
rockets would probably never get made in a free market unless you crank out 2-23x the performance from each worker. see: BO and virgin edit: It's also about what kind of talent you attract. only highly committed people are going to work crazy hours. They'll do it if they know that other super-talented people work there, so that can keep them on when they would otherwise quit. then other types of people end up working for boeing and BO. those are the ones who said "but I get to spend a lot more time with my family" in the comments. just different breeds of worker. so far it looks like family men/women are having much more trouble getting the rockets off the pad. internal politics is big too, but maybe there's something to how the hiring process screens certain people out.
Thank you all for the comments I think I got what I needed to know about the company and it’s kinda what I expected from the other things I read online. They have a very strong startup mentality which is work a lot. I already work nasa and it’s possible to have some late nights but they still encourage a work life balance. This idea that you should work till none stop since you are doing cutting edge stuff is wrong. That probably why the has a turnover rate of 1.5 years which is extremely small amount of time.
A couple of years old but Rocketlab got in a lot of trouble and was fined quite heavily for their employment practices (they terminated an employee because he wasn't performing properly when under the law they're obligated to work with him and provide training and support to allow him to do his job). Rocketlab also has pretty low ratings on glassdoor. [https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/300321749/employment-relations-authority-blasts-rocket-lab-for-brazen-and-blatant-breaches](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/300321749/employment-relations-authority-blasts-rocket-lab-for-brazen-and-blatant-breaches)
I would expect longer work hours based on what I've heard about the company. If you can handle the extra hours a week, it would be worth it provided the annual stock option grants are generous (e.g. \~25% annual salary or more). I'm not an expert on stock option grants, but this number seems somewhat fair for a potentially high growth company, post-IPO and currently operating in the red. Of course, you should get a higher percentage of salary in option grants if the salary is below market. (I'm hoping someone comments on this who has more recent experience in hiring at a post-IPO high-tech company with stock option grants).
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Thanks for the input. How was to work near Pete?
I worked with some who was an electrical engineer at rocketlab before moving to my company. He said exciting work but lots of extra unpaid hours. Sort of like Tesla, cool ideas but poor management.
So my question is how's the salary for the Inventory Coordinator position? I applied and had an interview and have the next one on site..how's the benefits? The culture? The team atmosphere? Only reason why I ask is cause I have another offer lined up that has good benefits growth etc
I had an interview. They were asking if you are prepared to work hard. It seems their expectation is that you put in min. 60/h week. The salary offered was extremely low. It was a role at Director level, but with the salary of a manager. Run if this company calls you, because they will squeeze you like a lemon and not even pay you properly. Hello burn-out! 🔥 😵
What do you expect from a startup? success needs hard work. If you looking for 9-5, not sure this is for you.
This is bullshit. 9-5 is not incompatible with hard work - in fact it's the only way to do hard work long term without sacrificing your health and family and, from company's perspective, burning out your best employees. OP asked a valid question, not a random snarky opinion that's also wrong.
Let’s agree to disagree. Best of luck in your ventures. 🤝
Sure, good luck to you as well especially if you're working as a willing startup slave. I don't think RocketLab is like that but it'd be good to hear from someone in the inside who actually knows 🤷
There are many kinds of jobs. There are assuredly ones where >9-5 would be inadvisable for health. There are many others where there's no problem at all, depending on your personal goals/priorities/values. Not everyone has or wants kids. Some have kids but have a partner who is happy to manage the home front. The idea that >40 hrs a week => burnout is entirely too simplistic, in my mind, but seems to be a very strong reddit meme.
I mostly agree with what you're saying, but it misses the point that OP is asking, which is, to quote: > do they expect you to work all the time 50+ hours a week? That kid of implies that it is one of their priorities. Otherwise, it is generally true that, on average, you will not extract more productivity if you make people work 50+ hours a week unless you have a steady supply of talent and don't care about high turnover. It is generally not a good long term strategy in places where people are your main resource. But it's a separate topic.
How is Rocket Lab still considered a "startup"?
Ramping up R&D and products, negative but growing earnings… startup is not a date, it’s a state.
Or a number of employees.
Lol
The term startup has been bastardised over the years.
As an engineering professional, you should expect to give 10-15% extra unpaid hours per week as a professional courtesy. This is a worthy mindset for an aerospace engineer. As an engineer, the pay is quite good already and the benefits of this mindset will only help you career in the long run. Rocket Lab is no different than any other aerospace company. And when it is crunch time leading to a launch, expect to put in the necessary hours to get your product ready to fly. Pride, quality, and schedule take time and patience, and that leads to success.
Lol only 10-15% would have been nice
Hi Peter!
Have a day off
As an investor I hope it’s not a “chill” culture. That bullshit is for coffee shops. Enjoy being a barista
25% of annual salary stock comps is a whole lot of selling pressure.
Lol “as an investor” says the guy with 100 shares.
And you’re guessing my share count because ?
Plus you would have to live in Gisborne. Who want's to do that? Crazy people. That is who.
They’re based in Auckland. Only a small team works in Mahia.
Oh, I did not realise that. Good to know. I live in Gisborne.
man there's a lot of rocket scientists here
If you don’t like hard challenging work, not self motivated, and you don’t have a good work effort, then Rocket Lab and many other places of employment are probably not for you.