Career advancement challenges arise for most researchers after a few years: the company's preferred path is for employees to move to Germany or a business unit at that point, but those options are often not preferred by the research oriented engineers that get hired at this site; returning to the research center after a foreign assignment is extremely difficult. The company's size and process-driven approach create some cultural challenges in silicon valley, and slow research progress down relative to more agile or focused valley companies. Communication and relationships with HQ in Germany are a struggle.