Johnson & Johnson Employee Reviews for V&V Scientist

"Not a place for innovators, but an enjoyable place to work."

What do you like about working at Johnson & Johnson?

"Relaxed environment, enjoyable coworkers, generally enjoyable management. There really isn't too much backstabbing that I've experienced here, or catty/overly gossipy co-workers, which is nice. While most of the assignments I worked on where not too challenging intellectually, I've had a lot of experience and practice staying focused on monotonous and repetitive assignments. This isn't an overly competitive workplace as I've experienced it. Contractors are also treated pretty nicely here, and often do the same jobs as direct hires with little difference in many cases."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"Company website is good, the IFU's (instructions for use) under clinical laboratory tech documents has info on every assay the company markets. There is a blurb at the beginning of each document stating what each assay is for and what it's used to diagnose. Good knowledge to have if you're interviewing in sales, R&D, or something product related. Microtips, Microslides, and Microwells (as well as the analyzers that use them) are the main products the company supports itself on."

What don't you like about working at Johnson & Johnson?

"People are sometimes hired to do somewhat mindless jobs (but are usually paid well to do them to be fair). The majority of data analysis for FDA submissions is typically done in Excel, but few people seem to have much knowledge in programming, Visual Basic or automation within Excel. So a great deal of time is spent doing simple repetitive tasks that could be automated (copy and pasting, format changes, etc.) Even some senior personnel sometimes have limited knowledge regarding aspects of ongoing tests, so it is not uncommon to have to track down multiple people involved in the same test before finding the one who can answer your question. The company doesn't seem to have a very strong desire to find the best people for particular jobs within its ranks. Senior members don't seem to have to worry too much about ambitious juniors, and there doesn't appear to be very much movement within the ranks."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"There is a very hierarchical structure here where people sometimes try to horde personnel or resources as a matter of status or importance. There is some wasted talent as personnel are occasionally hired to do jobs that occupy a limited segment of their skill set, or require a limited segment of their workday. Train people to do multiple jobs, and shift the workpool when departmental needs dictate it. I thought it was wasteful to fill every position for peak workload conditions."