Okay for a big medical device company
Overall, my time as an R&D Engineer at Alcon in Fort Worth, Texas was decent. The work-life balance really depends on your specific team and project deadlines, which is pretty common in the medical device industry.
They really do push hybrid work, which is nice. I could manage my schedule a bit better than a fully onsite role. For an R&D Engineer, the projects are interesting, and you learn a lot about ophthalmology devices.
Deadlines can get pretty crazy sometimes, especially around product launches. You can easily work 50+ hours a week then. It's tough to truly disconnect when you're deep in a project for the medical device industry, even with hybrid options.
Try to smooth out project peaks more. Give R&D teams better support to avoid constant crunch times. It helps with burnout and retaining good talent.