Exited more than a year ago. Talked to colleagues about worsening work conditions, decided to write a review after all
Gut am Arbeitgeber finde ich
Technology is interesting. Mynaric still needs to achieve space legacy though else it will go into the history books as one of those organizations that have burned hundreds of millions without having ever been able to mature into a solid company that respects its employees and delivers on its promises.
Schlecht am Arbeitgeber finde ich
Heavy handed management style. Lack of work-life balance. Rather toxic workplace culture.
Verbesserungsvorschläge
Problem with toxic company cultures: once entrenched, incredibly difficult to change.
Some suggestions to start with: replace key managers with people accustomed to the German labor market and high integrity. Bring in people with a positive leadership style as key managers.
Arbeitsatmosphäre
I previously had the experience of working in a highly political company, so I feel compelled to share my experiences at mynaric for the benefit of future employees and put into objective perspective.
The work atmosphere in this organization is characterized by a myriad of underhanded tactics and power plays, making it a challenging environment to thrive in.
By far the most extreme company I have ever worked for in my long career in terms of office politics. The problem is that the only people who seem to be allowed to "play" office politics proper are the Head of HR and Management. The rest is expected to toe the line. So it resembles more of a tyranny rather than a place you could actually perform to advance.
Kommunikation
Managers make a lot of promises to their teams but keep only little. Top-down communication style with a strong culture of office politics that overshadows professional merit and hard work. The works council is not helpful but crassly politicized itself.
Kollegenzusammenhalt
Dirty politics not only creates a toxic work environment but also leads to a lack of transparent communication and trust among colleagues. The only way for you to fit in is to keep your mouth shut. If you fall out of grace with some of the more "important" (does not equal competent) managers at Mynaric, the players ensure to spread gossip and damage reputations all the while attempting to occupy the moral high ground. I have seen this happen a couple of times.
HR seems to be trained in what they do. The entire HR team had resigned when its current Head took office. Unfortunately, that person has never worked in Germany before. Be aware that Mynaric is not a German company (it is only based in the Munich area to save personnel costs (good engineers elsewhere are way more expensive) but more of a US-style hire and fire oven. If necessary, managers produce dirt on people to get rid of them for cause.
Work-Life-Balance
You should not join if you are not willing to go the 1000 extra miles for average pay (if you are lucky and not dependent on a work visa that is).
One of the most disheartening aspects was witnessing the prevalence of dirty games being played especially within teams. This included favoritism, backstabbing, and spreading of misinformation, which was not only unethical but also detrimental to the people's morale and integrity.
Your mental health will deteriorate working at mynaric.
Vorgesetztenverhalten
Promotions and recognitions seemed to be based more on personal alliances than actual performance. This approach not only demotivates dedicated employees but also hampers the overall growth and innovation within the company.
The management team appeared to be deeply entrenched in political dynamics, often prioritizing personal agendas over the well-being and development of their teams.
Interessante Aufgaben
While the company may offer opportunities for growth and learning, the heavily politicized atmosphere and the prevalence of underhanded tactics significantly undermine the overall work experience.
I hope this review helps prospective employees to make an informed decision about their potential engagement with this organization.
The system is designed to keep people down and small. Only join if you don't have better alternatives lined up or are looking to jump ship soon anyway.
Gleichberechtigung
I am female and I don't think this is a problem. The industry attracts whom it attracts. Those that want to work with laser comms join irrespective of gender/ethnicity/religion what not. I don't believe in artificial quotas anyway.
Umgang mit älteren Kollegen
never been an issue
Arbeitsbedingungen
well equipped, can't complain on this front
Umwelt-/Sozialbewusstsein
ESG is not a topic at mynaric which I find good though as there is much noise and little substance around these topics in corporate environments. ESG blabber mostly serves as virtue signalling.
Gehalt/Sozialleistungen
I negotiated an OK salary, but there is lots of variance across the workforce (depends on whether HR/Management thinks they have leverage on you).
Image
Good external marketing, but toxic workplace. In addition, we will have to see if Mynaric can finally deliver on their serial production promises which they have been announcing for several years.
Karriere/Weiterbildung
Unfortunately, I was not able to envision a decent career path for myself other than driving home some key learnings and moving on to different places.