Careers Home "There are no passengers on this plane. We are all crew members, and everybody does their part to ensure our success." - Lonnie Smith, Chairman of the Board of Directors Through dedication, collaboration and innovation, our employees strive to create and support technology with the goal of improving patients' lives worldwide. This philosophy means we do everything we can to produce products that provide the best possible outcomes for patients. We firmly believe that by maintaining this focus success will continue to follow. Therefore, the success of Intuitive Surgical is due to its technology, its vision, its staff and foremost, its focus on patients first. Who do we typically hire? While experience is important, it is eclipsed by character. In fact, we strive to find and hire individuals with the strongest of character, as well as the energy and capacity to get the job done. Collectively, these employees create a unique and effective work environment. Our corporate culture is often described as: lean, fast-moving, agile, results-driven and entrepreneurial, but the word that comes up most often is "passionate". Passion to improve the lives of patients in all that we do allows our company to sustain its position as the global technology leader in robotic-assisted surgery. But, the Intuitive Surgical culture is multi-faceted, and is displayed in the tremendous dedication, integrity, camaraderie and compassion of our employees. There is a common story about the value and view of work that centers around three people who were asked what they did for a living. The first worker answered by saying he built bricks. The second worker said he built walls. The final worker answered the question by saying he built cathedrals that would be the heart of the community and the location of monumental life events such as marriages and funerals. Intuitive Surgical has fostered a culture resulting in employees who have the mindset that they are ‘building cathedrals’. Every member of our workforce understands their day-to-day role in bringing the final product to market. The highly qualified and motivated people we hire all have an even stronger understanding of the impact our product will have on improving and potentially saving patients’ lives. Intense? Yes. Rewarding? Absolutely! In answering the question: Is Intuitive Surgical right for you? A better question to ask yourself may be: Do you want to build cathedrals? * Why Intuitive Surgical? * Benefits * Diversity & Social Responsibility * Career Profiles * Job Opportunities * Internships Serious complications may occur in any surgery, including da Vinci® Surgery, up to and including death. Examples of serious or life-threatening complications, which may require prolonged and/or unexpected hospitalization and/or reoperation, include but are not limited to, one or more of the following: injury to tissues/organs, bleeding, infection and internal scarring that can cause long-lasting dysfunction/pain. Risks of surgery also include the potential for equipment failure and/or human error. Individual surgical results may vary. Risks specific to minimally invasive surgery, including da Vinci Surgery, include but are not limited to, one or more of the following: temporary pain/nerve injury associated with positioning; temporary pain/discomfort from the use of air or gas in the procedure; a longer operation and time under anesthesia and conversion to another surgical technique. If your doctor needs to convert the surgery to another surgical technique, this could result in a longer operative time, additional time under anesthesia, additional or larger incisions and/or increased complications. Patients who are not candidates for non-robotic minimally invasive surgery are also not candidates for da Vinci® Surgery. Patients should talk to their doctor to decide if da Vinci Surgery is right for them. Patients and doctors should review all available information on non-surgical and surgical options in order to make an informed decision. For Important Safety Information, including surgical risks, indications, and considerations and contraindications for use, please also refer to http://www.intuitivesurgical.com/safety. Unless otherwise noted, all people depicted are models. © 2014 Intuitive Surgical. All rights reserved. All product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.