engineer

intern

architect

temperature screener

welder

Firefly Aerospace

I was very enthusiastic to begin working here - however after the first week, it became evident that this environment is toxic. 

Being a small startup, I expected there to be some level of camaraderie and commonality that unified the employees toward achieving the audacious goal of building a rocket. However, what I realized is that the environment was extremely cut-throat and toxic. 

People are constantly flowing in and out of this place, and as a result, there is no sense of job security. This lack of job security fosters a toxic work environment that feeds a particularly vicious game of office politics. Rather than focusing on the grand goal of building a rocket, people find themselves pulled into arguments that deal with issues as trivial as their attire or personal, non work-related conflicts with other employees. At this point, any reason to kick someone off the island is considered legitimate.

It becomes quickly evident that in order to survive in this workplace, you had better sell your soul to the company and forget about work life balance, because the average person here works 60  to 70 hours a week. Of course, this is in part due to being a small startup with devoted employees who believe in the company's mission. However, it is so ingrained in the work culture that it essentially becomes a work policy-- those who don't dedicate 15 hours a day to their work are quickly thrown overboard. 

Finally, the HR department is one of the most flawed I have ever seen. This department of one - yes one person (it's a small company, remember?) essentially possesses the power to hire and fire employees without consultation of any of the managers or legitimate reason.  Since HR consists of one person, there is no system of checks and balances to limit or check HR's decisions. The one-person HR department has the ability to unilaterally make decisions based on its own personal judgements. This can be particularly dangerous when HR conspires to plot the fate of who it deems unfavorable employees. 

This job would probably work for someone with a competitive and cut-throat spirit , who is adept at the scheme of office politics.

Management works you to the bone without any support and will play the blame game when anything starts to go wrong.  Management does not take accountability for their decisions and will find someone to take the fall for their mistakes in order to save themselves.  Firefly does not pay suppliers which make ordering required materials for work impossible because they are on credit hold with almost every supplier they interact with.  They are constantly covering up safety concerns and money issues, firefly will go through multiple layoff periods and keep it under wraps to try and protect the already failing company image.  This is a company of zero morals, zero ethics, and zero culture.  They are the used car salesman of the rocket industry that sale false hopes and dreams to investors and customers.  If you’re goal is to become a better engineer, advanced in your career, or just have a secure job this is not the place for you. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
Be part of something special.  It's hard work and long hours.  But not many people can say they helped put something in to orbit or landed a vehicle on the moon.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Changing priorities is the most stressful.  But, the needs of the business are always top concern.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Friendly people especially on the launch side of the business.  They drive innovation which makes the work exciting.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Arrive to work with the expectation of picking up where you left the day before.  However, be prepared to pivot to another priority.  The company has many balls in the air... it's just the nature of juggling three lines of business.

I'm still in shock that I get to work here. It's a once in three lifetimes opportunity and I wouldn't change it for the world!

Yes, the work is hard. No, I don't stick to a 40 hour work-week. But the best things in life don't come without work. 

Firefly is still small enough that most of us work in one of the two central Texas locations and we all know each other. What that means is, if I want to move to another department, all I have to do is ask. 

Project ownership is something that a lot of companies talk about, but it's really the focus here. Sure that's a bit more responsibility that some people aren't ready for, but I like to know that I'm a critical part of my product.

Despite Texas summers, I don't have any plans to do anything else!

A LOT of nepotism, Directors and CIOs that have no clue and no business being in charge of anything. They hire you for one thing and then try and shove as many responsibilities on you as possible because they can't pay market rate. Expect NO Work / Life balance unless you're a manager type. Surprise On-Call requirements so there go your weekends.

A lot of condescending and arrogant people in upper levels. A LOT of turnover due to poor management and the expectation that you will just "do everything" when hired.

Did I mention that they don't pay their bills? Can't order equipment that's needed, services needed to do your job aren't paid, and that's somehow your fault.

Poorly managed company from the top all the way down. They hire or promote people with the lack of proper skills. There is no communication between departments. 
They don't care about quality, that's why the rockets blow up or they constantly have mechanical or software problems.  They were supposed to launch 6 rockets in 2024, then it was reduced to 4 and so far they only launched 1. That shows they have a lot of problems.  HR doesn't care about employees. You email them to talk about concerns and they never have time to talk. They allow some employees to get away with things they should have been fired for.  They are always hiring new employees and that is because so many people just quit. They have layoffs all the time because they won't pay their bills. 

Inept management, terrible communication, CEO who's unable to delegate and changes designs etc. on the fly without informing people who actually know what they're doing.
This place is almost a parody of a startup; Starbucks coffee, game consoles, ping-pong table, full of interns who haven't got a clue. Maybe that kind of environment can work for a software or social media company, but these people are trying to build rockets; serious hardware requiring rigorous quality control and regulation (for good reason).
Firefly are great at promotion and appearing a dynamic company, but it's all smoke and mirrors with no meaningful policies or procedures in place. I truthfully couldn't recommend this company to anyone.

Typically ~4 hours of CAD as a design engineer, 2 hours of mentor collaboration, 2-3 hours of independent research. Learned a ton about FEA, vendor/technician relationships, and troubleshooting techniques. Amazing work culture, push you to do your best, but don’t scold you if you struggle. Hardest part of job was finding the right vendor for manufacturing. Best part of job was my coworkers (I went to Six Flags with 11 of them). 

Cool engineering projects especially in composites. However, this company is fundamentally flawed inclusive of many issues: bad product, bad leadership, poor understanding of industry requirements, terrible respect for employees, and a general lack of vision. Not a good place to be a middle career engineer. They want new hires or they show you the door after 1 year. This is not a career friendly company, only a company that needs meat for the grinder.

The company has gone through a growth spurt recently which resulted in a few procedures and policies falling behind schedule which is normal in a startup type environment.  

The company will provide a lot of great opportunities to learn something new, take ownership in a project and have great growth opportunities all while being compensated fairly (stock is great too!)  In order to have these opportunities though you have to work hard and understand that it is not an 8-5pm environment.  People are expected to give a lot but the company will give back to you in return.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Engineer 3 salaries reported	$106,333 per year
Intern 7 salaries reported	$25.50 per hour
Architect 12 salaries reported	$209,500 per year
Temperature screener 10 salaries reported	$23.50 per hour
Welder 2 salaries reported	$31.25 per hour

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