programmer analyst

research associate

computer scientist

research scientist

intern

SRI International

SRI was a great company to work at for 10 years. They have amazing benefits, and a great work-life balance.  I was able to work on some truly amazing and exciting projects. Being a Non-Profit, I was blissfully shielded from dealing with sales and marketing problems (mainly with corporate strategy) I had experienced at previous employers in the private software vendor industry. 

Some programs even entitle you to receive a royalty benefit which pays out every quarter.

However, SRI's main customer is the Federal Government. And since 2013; this business has been in decline. SRI was unable to change with the times to seek private sources of revenue; so when several of our major programs were delayed or cut, they were forced to cut staff. There was also a recent change in executive staff in 2016; they tried to make changes, but IMO, they went in the wrong direction, particularly with their IT investment. 

The skills I nurtured as a software engineer were very diverse, and I enjoyed solving many of the unique problems our customers had, using a broad set of skills. Unfortunately, this did not prepare me for how the software engineering job market has evolved into a set of highly specialized sub-fields. If you're a researcher or a research engineer at SRI, the world is your oyster. If you're a software engineer, you have virtually no path for career advancement, or to build skills in a specialized sub-field, because you're on a different project every 6-12 months with a different technology stack. You will have to find a new employer who values that; instead of the one that's looking for 8+ years of .NET experience; you won't get that here.

SRI International is so multi-faceted, opinions in the suggested areas are bound to vary from person to person.  For instance, people working in support roles have a pretty set schedule, as with most jobs, while engineers and research personnel often have a more flexible schedule.
Most of what I learned would fall under the heading "Intangibles", other than properly filling out documentation for the project I worked with, according to the client's guidance.
Management seems to be hesitant in holding people as accountable as their peers would like, but that is a reality of any Project-type environment:  the majority of team members primarily work for someone else, and can always opt to leave.
The hardest part of my job was working at such a distance that timely responses were not always possible from the corporate end.  I was in a decided minority compared to the majority of the work situations.
The most enjoyable was the confidence my supervisors had in my abilities, and their consistent and constant support, as well as the timely mentorship.

I worked remotely as  a recruiter for primarily PhD Scientists and Engineers in about 8 locations, including Tokyo. A typical day at work started with deciding who I'd be calling as possible candidates, creating and sending job descriptions to people who were good fits, having conversations with the best candidates, and presenting the best candidates to the manager of the position. The most enjoyable part of the job was having open conversations with Scientists and Engineers and the best were those who were very successful and not ego focused. Someone asked me recently what did I like about the position and it clearly was having so many conversations with people I just mentioned. There are other phases of recruiting that are not nearly as enjoyment, such as, hunting for excellent candidates, keeping them interested as they are also looking at competitors and then convincing the manager that a specific candidate is the best of the bunch.

I was blessed to work at SRI as a student associate. Although I only personally work with a Material Scientist, this experience was invaluable. For just an internship, I was given my own computer, my own office, and given a very nice welcome package which included the option of starting a 401K. As a scientist, I worked in a lab. The conditions were not ideal at the time but the research was eye opening. As a non-profit, this company seems to always be on it's tiptoes but sources of money from the government were always a sure fire thing. Unfourtantely because I was in and out a lot (as a student at the time), I did not interact with management very much but when I did, they were always friendly and incredibly smart. The interactions between me and my coworkers were wonderful and if I had the chance, I would go back in a heartbeat. I'm not sure I'd ever be able to say the same thing about any other company I will work for in the future.

Typical days run 12-16 hours of work followed by another hour or so of down time where you may be required to make arrangements for the following days.  Learning people skills and time management is the best tool out there to accomplish each and every task in a timely manner.  Trust but verify is what I expect from my management and is what I do with my management.  Again, this is using the people skill, learning each others strength and weakness is key for knowing who to put where.  Hardest part of the day is trying to make situations better or preventing issues from arising and at the same time, accomplishing a task that has been painstaking or challenging is the best feeling one can have.  Nothing better than making everything work as it is suppose to.

"old" means the facilities, research vision, knowledge, and coworker's age. 

Some nice and smart ppl there. Some managers are nice. It may be an ok place for a new grad, but definitely not experienced ones. 

The higher management level lacks vision and research quality is very low. 

Many researchers are 50+, which should not be a problem if their knowledge is up to date.  However, most of them are not. Some managers and researchers like to pretend to understand things, which is super annoying. I really do not understand how clients can trust the company. 

Job is not secure! Being layoff is not uncommon there as each lab takes financial responsibility to itself. However, layoff depends on whether you have a project or not, but not based on your ability. So, pray you are working on a stable project.

Working with SRI International is such a rewarding experience; being able to help our soldiers and knowing the benefits they receive with the product we’re producing makes it all worthwhile. A typical day starts by going out into the field, setting up all equipment (switchboard, camera’s, audio) while leaving enough time for troubleshooting if needed, recording the after action review and returning all media to the editors where they finish the video and have it posted within 48 hours. The most enjoyable part of the day is filming the AAR, interacting with the troops and seeing firsthand how beneficial this program is for them. I have always worked with talented people and great management; we are all their for one reason and that’s to support our troops and complete the mission.

I believe that any typical day at any job is the same all around. There are times when you could be busy all day, that you don't even realize where the time has gone. And then there are the days when  work is slow that you have to go around asking for work, just trying to look busy. Management was real kick back, but firm when need be. But very open minded people. Not hard to get along with at all. I would have to say that the hardest part about the job was having to pick up after the technicians and maintain the medical supplies in the warehouse. And the most enjoyable part of the job was learning new things and meeting people with many different personalities and characters.

Heard that a project was using the FFT algorithm to do some calculations.  My studies had shown that the FFT was not valid for industrial problems, as it is/was stated in its write-up.  The FFT was only for exactly one cycle of data; thus, not for industry.

Left SRI and was hired by Lockheed Missiles and Space Co.  One project interview, another group was using the FFT too.  I told the interviewer that was a bad choice!  He hired me!!!  I showed them a dozen other methods to consider.  They chose one and made great headway on their problem.

One manager says NO, the next says YES.

Employees receive training in many different areas of specialty, so this company is a great first job for people.

The management can overlook the forest for the trees and very rarely sees the big picture. Inconsistent criteria for advancement. Compensation is low for the amount of work required (overtime will be scheduled to the point where one's work/life balance will be disrupted).

As a four year veteran who is just now taking his own advice - do the work, get your training, excel at it, but don't stay here too long.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Programmer analyst 45 salaries reported	$57,773 per year
Research associate 3 salaries reported	$66,000 per year
Computer scientist 3 salaries reported	$167,333 per year
Research scientist 3 salaries reported	$122,667 per year
Intern 4 salaries reported	$28.75 per hour

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