MKS Instruments reviews

4.0

83% would recommend to a friend

(398 total reviews)
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John T.C. Lee

89% approve of CEO

67% positive business outlook

MKS Instruments has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 398 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The MKS Instruments employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Manufactura industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

398 reviews
3.0
Jun 5, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Most people are very willing to help and friendly - There are some politics, but not usually there and not as much as I have seen elsewhere, because people in this specific site tend to have worked there for 5+ years within the site - Tend to cut benefits, not people, when market slows down, though, when they do lay people off, it tends to be few and far apart, i.e., people past retirement age, but sometimes also people who did work hard but offended some people in the higher up - (pro or con?) the manager's manager is very sympathetic, though, not being the direct managers, unique challenges faced by females & non-majority people & engineers don't often actually get addressed short-term or long-term, forcing them to leave the company instead

Cons

- (working environment) Over incidents of more than 3 - 4 white male (US or West European) who either currently or in the past work have: shouted at females engineers in the lab (one person did it twice to 2 different females), much more demanding/exploiting of female engineers' time and effort without acknowledgement or compensation, disrespectful or outright abusive behaviors on purpose when addressing of non-white and/or female (e.g., avoid actually using their names, passive aggressively object/undermine them in meetings and in the lab when working together as retribution, etc.) --> some when reported to HR, HR direct the employees to deal with it themselves or report to the manager, but usually it is because the direct manager refused to deal with them so that they went to HR. The only way is to talk to manager's manager, but in most cases no long-term solutions and immediate solutions usually don't change the toxic environment enough for people to want to stay long-term (already 5 female sr & pr level engineers left under these circumstances and toxic environment to females within 4 years) - (working environment) your actual working life depends on the direct manager you have, if you have a good direct manager, your work and personal life would be manageable - (compensation) 2 - 5% annual bonus, not huge, but not nothing, though, in comparison to other companies of the same caliber, it is meager (though, Milpitas location is relatively stable in terms of trying not to lay off people) - Though!!!! I would not discourage female and/or non-majority from applying to R&D, most of the managers and team members are fine, some are even great!

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MKS Instruments Response
1y
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We sincerely appreciate your candid feedback and your contributions over the past several years. While we’re encouraged to hear that you've experienced collaboration and support from many colleagues, we take the issues you’ve raised very seriously. At MKS, we believe that we win as a team—and that starts with fostering a culture rooted in mutual respect, constructive candor, and accountability. We are committed to providing an inclusive environment where all employees feel valued and safe. MKS is committed to providing a work environment that is free of any kind of bullying, discrimination, harassment, or other unlawful or unwelcome behavior. We understand that creating meaningful and lasting change requires more than good intentions. That’s why we are continuing to strengthen our resources, including HR training and leadership development, to better address the unique challenges that may impact some employees. We also offer employee networks focused on inclusion and belonging, which create additional space for support, connection, and advocacy. Your feedback underscores the importance of reinforcing these commitments at every level of the organization. But we can only address the specific concerns you’ve raised with more information. If you’re open to continuing this conversation or sharing more, we welcome your voice by meeting with your HR representative, through our internal Digital Dialogue program, or directly at mks.feedback@mksinst.com. Your insights are essential to our growth, and we thank you again for speaking up.
2.0
Feb 16, 2023

Difficulty maintaining a healthy work life there.

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

-Coworkers were great and friendly. -Cafeteria with daily food selections for breakfast + lunch (Only for 1st shift, second shift and later it would be closed sadly) -Free Coffee

Cons

-Pushed for unrealistic quotas. -Annual raises that didn't match the work we had to put in (less than 50 cents). -Management and Engineering would buttheads for how things were done seemingly undiscussed, the blame was then put onto the workers for "Not doing something correctly" or "Not working efficiently/fast enough."

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MKS Instruments Response
3y
Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. It is great to know that you enjoy working with your colleagues. We all recognize that a healthy work environment has a positive impact on our overall well-being. At MKS, we strive for a competitive pay and benefits package, and we continually evaluate our comprehensive benefits offerings to ensure we are appropriately aligned to the market. Effective communication can be difficult to achieve between departments, but we are here to listen to your concerns and help facilitate better communication. Feel free to reach out to us confidentially at MKS.Feedback@mksinst.com to discuss potential approaches or next steps.
2.0
Feb 16, 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

MKS products are exceptional and support the most advanced applications in their respective market. A great place to work for engineering talent, and has an exceptional talent pool of people across the globe to work/partner with. The company however lacks leadership, skills and software investment for supply chain, supply planning, operations and inventory management.

Cons

Bureaucracy slows ability to scale, leadership unwilling to delegate decisions, human glue to support execution, limited IT technology to enable SC effectiveness, PTO below industry with forced usage through shutdowns.

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MKS Instruments Response
3y
Thank you for your feedback. It is great to see you recognize our position as an industry leader. Our vision is “enabling the technologies that transform our world” and our innovative products and employees support our ability to be successful in executing this vision every day and year-after-year. We understand how a lack of delegation or too many administrative procedures can result in frustration and ineffectiveness. We encourage constructive dialogue between employees and managers to help address these types of concerns. We also offer many resources for manager development that will help enable everyone to bring their best to work every day. At MKS we strive for a competitive pay and benefits package, including our PTO, and we continually evaluate our comprehensive benefits offerings to ensure we are appropriately aligned to the market. If you have any additional feedback or would like to discuss these matters further, please reach out directly to MKS.Feedback@mksinst.com.
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