Merck reviews

4.1

83% would recommend to a friend

(6,160 total reviews)
avatar

Rob Davis

82% approve of CEO

71% positive business outlook

Merck has an employee rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars, based on 6,160 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The Merck employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Farmacéutica y biotecnología industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

6K reviews
4.0
Jul 6, 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The company is a great. There are a lot of talented people here, and a lot of resources to get things done. The company has no deficit for providing employees with all the tools necessary to be impactful and to make real change. That can’t be said of every company. There’s also a decent desire to make everyone feel welcome, safe and heard, and to provide a quality work-life balance.

Cons

Just like everyone company, where politics of people are key, Merck is no stranger. There’s a lot of layers and stakeholders. Which makes for a conservative and risk-averse environment. That doesn’t mean that risk is intolerable — you just better have everything figured out before you move everything along with you. Poor ideas and poorly substantive work will be crushed before novel ideas ever take off. That said, the right ears will give novel ideals some serious wings. Currently, Merck is feeling out it’s positions in a lot of high value areas due to the changes experienced by the industry post-COVID. It’s both an exciting time to be in such a company, but the hope is Merck’s layered governance doesn’t get in its own way.

2.0
Jul 2, 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Merck offers opportunities to work on independent projects and publication is highly encouraged. This is particularly straightforward in the chemistry department, which is very well resourced.

Cons

The culture at Merck has become one of indifference to innovative bioscience, which is reflected in the mood of employees and management alike: low enthusiasm for the science and apathy toward influencing the next generation of therapeutics. It was discouraging to see great colleagues’ talent go unused and their drive to impact patients be neglected. Conversations in the labs rarely touched on scientific topics as people bided their time before the commute home, meetings focused on box-checking exercises to fulfill year-end goals, and managers closed their office doors to read the news and trade stocks. Over the course of 2018-2021, many experienced colleagues departed the company, leaving those content with the status quo and ensconcing a culture of indifference.

4.0
May 27, 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

salary, bonus, pension, insurance, employee perks, easy work, was able to do what they considered a full-time job in less than 20 hours a week which left me time to pursue other interests

Cons

You are considered "new" at Merck for the first 5 years. Thick crony politics and need to focus on your "image" more than the quality of work. Takes two to three times to complete work than is really necessary - not to due to compliance/regulatory environment - but trying to appear to be working.

Viewing 289 - 291 of 6,160 Reviews

Glassdoor has 8,172 Merck reviews submitted anonymously by Merck employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Merck is right for you.