MathWorks

I was hired straight out of university and did technical support for 1.5 years. I made some lifelong friends and gained a breadth of knowledge in practical mathematics/analysis. My next 4.5 years were spent with a math-centric software team.

I would recommend MathWorks for either starting a career in numerical computing or supporting a family. It is very difficult to move up or down the corporate ladder. You learn 95% of everything you'll ever need to know in the first 2-3 years.

While a job at MathWorks is very stable, it comes at the price of long-term stagnation. Understand that MathWorks is a private company and has been run by the same person for 40 years. Most managers have been with the company for 15+ years, and there is an emphasis on the "slow and steady" mantra. Both salary increases and career advancement are slow. After 6 years, I left as a junior developer – the same position as when I started.

Myself and many of my friends have left the company (or are currently interviewing elsewhere) during COVID because we no longer enjoy the work we are doing.

The CEO and vice-CEO of MATLAB have no coherent vision for a product that is now openly competing against open-source software.

Personally, I also believe MathWorks' handling of COVID for the last (almost) two years has revealed how out-of-touch and ineffective management really is. I lost a great deal of respect for everyone from the CEO down to my direct manager.

At a company where everyone plays it safe, COVID revealed how many people can flip a switch and only look out for themselves, albeit with a friendly face.