software engineer

partnership manager

solutions manager

product manager

machine learning engineer

TikTok

#### Overall Experience: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

Working at TikTok as a Product Manager has been an exhilarating and enriching experience. Here's a breakdown of my journey and the key aspects that stood out:

#### Company Culture: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The company culture at TikTok is vibrant, inclusive, and dynamic. There's a strong emphasis on innovation and creativity, encouraging employees to think outside the box and push boundaries. The diverse and multicultural environment fosters a sense of community and belonging, making it an exciting place to work.

#### Work-Life Balance: ⭐⭐⭐☆☆
While TikTok is an incredibly stimulating place to work, the fast-paced nature of the tech industry often means long hours and high expectations. There are periods of intense work, especially around product launches and updates. However, the company does make efforts to support work-life balance with flexible working hours and wellness programs.

#### Professional Growth: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
TikTok offers immense opportunities for professional growth. The fast-evolving nature of the platform means that product managers are constantly learning and adapting. The company invests heavily in employee development through training programs, workshops, and conferences. There's also a clear path for career progression, with many opportunities to take on new challenges and responsibilities.

#### Compensation and Benefits: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
The compensation package at TikTok is competitive, with a good balance of salary, bonuses, and stock options. Benefits include comprehensive health insurance, generous paid time off, and various wellness initiatives. The company also provides perks like free meals, fitness classes, and fun team-building activities.

#### Job Responsibilities: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
As a product manager at TikTok, the responsibilities are diverse and impactful. The role involves overseeing the development and launch of new features, analyzing user feedback, and working closely with cross-functional teams including engineering, design, and marketing. The work is challenging but highly rewarding, as you directly contribute to the app's growth and user satisfaction.

#### Team Collaboration: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Collaboration is at the heart of TikTok's success. The teams are cross-functional and highly collaborative, ensuring that everyone’s expertise is leveraged to create the best possible products. Regular meetings, brainstorming sessions, and open communication channels make it easy to share ideas and feedback.

#### Innovation and Impact: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
One of the most exciting aspects of working at TikTok is the opportunity to innovate and make a tangible impact. The platform is constantly evolving, and product managers play a crucial role in shaping its future. Seeing your ideas come to life and influence millions of users worldwide is incredibly fulfilling.

#### Final Thoughts
Working at TikTok as a product manager is a unique and rewarding experience. The role offers the chance to work on cutting-edge technology in a highly creative and fast-paced environment. While the demands can be high, the support, opportunities for growth, and the ability to make a significant impact make it a truly worthwhile experience. If you are passionate about technology, innovation, and making a difference, TikTok is a fantastic place to be.

What is the best part of working at the company?
It used to be the culture. There are no best parts of working here. I guess the best part is you can say you work for TikTok. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
They overwork you, and promise you promotions, or chances to grow. You will put in countless hours on a project, or build out implementation proposals and they overlook you, or take your work and get credit for it. There is constant change to the guidelines on promotions, and how to become a leader, or how to move up a level. They expect you to meet your metrics when there is absolutely no work, and you are rated poorly on your performance reviews because they only look at numbers and not contributions like they say they do. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment is, you better be friends with management if you want anything to work in your favor. The culture is they don’t care about your life and work life balance. There is no team morale. We don’t talk all day, unless it’s about high volumes in the queues, or what we are doing wrong. There is no team building, conversation, jokes, nothing. You clock in, work in your queue, receive messages from leaders on why your status and numbers are low, micromanaged to the extreme, and then clock out feeling worse than you did clocking in. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
We have huddled that are mandatory thag no one ever talks in. We are told the same information as the day before and the same information that is posted in chats. You then work in your queues, answer chats from leaded as to why you’re not working (even though there is absolutely no work to be done) then sit there refreshing constantly looking for work so you don’t get yelled at. Then attend trainings and calibrations that show no team is aligned, then clock out.

TikTok offers competitive pay, generous benefits, and strong PTO and PSSL policies. The RSU program is also a great incentive and adds significant value for employees. However, the company’s culture and leadership structure can make it a challenging environment.

HR tends to prioritize company interests over employee advocacy, and raising concerns can sometimes be perceived negatively. Upper management is often focused more on metrics and optics than on team development or well-being. Internal politics can be prevalent, and feedback processes don’t always encourage genuine growth or collaboration.

Layoffs have become increasingly common, and roles or priorities can shift frequently with little notice, which creates uncertainty for employees. While the compensation and global exposure are strong advantages, prospective employees should be aware that long-term stability and supportive leadership can vary significantly by team.

There are two TikToks - Chinese offices, and non-Chinese offices. And that doesn't mean the location the office is physically in but who comprises the workforce. Workplace culture is largely dictated by that delineation. If you don't speak Mandarin - working at a Chinese office is rough and socially isolating. 

The hours are pretty atrocious. Almost all of the company is global which means early morning meetings and late night meetings are frequent. While the 9-9-6 culture was formally retired, there are still remnants among the old guard. The food/beverages are pretty good overall.

Middle management at the company is no better/no worse than similar tech companies - which is to say it's pretty bad. Managers are promoted based on their abilities in that function (analyst, project manager, engineer, etc.) but then given no proper training/foundation to become an effective people manager. That leads to some truly awful middle managers that do more harm than good.

Senior management isn't much better and lacks focus - they're running from fire to fire. A lot of them implement the same playbooks I've seen at other tech companies where they will grow their fiefdom as large as possible, do a re-org for one department/team once a quarter, invent a new metric every year to tell the story they want to tell, and surround themselves with enablers.

The company has become extremely bureaucratic and is no longer the nimble startup it once was. 

The company’s priorities are clear: make money, hit targets, and keep moving. Development, growth, employee experience, and human-centered leadership do not appear to be treated as real priorities.

This can be a good environment for people who are comfortable with pressure, direct expectations, and a highly transactional culture. But for employees who care about learning, mentorship, purpose, career growth, or being treated as more than a revenue-producing resource, the experience can feel draining.

The company would benefit from recognizing that sustainable performance requires investment in people. Employees need coaching, support, development, and leaders who care about more than the numbers. Without that, the culture risks becoming one where people deliver until they burn out, then leave.

If your main goal is income and you are comfortable with a money-first culture, this may work for you. If you want growth, belonging, or a healthier leadership environment, I would be cautious.

Where do I start....
Moderation teams have awful schedules. We are asked to work on a rotational basis and cover different shifts (yes, like any other vendor). Oh, and forget about thinking on holidays in the within 2 -3 months because you don't how your schedule is gonna look like by then. 
Onboarding was poor and nothing close to what you really do in a daily basis. I spent more time in the general onboarding with icebreaker and "fun" activities, than in the training for the job I was hired for, and when I went live I noticed how poor the training for my role had been.

Many people is so confused about the processes but I don't blame the moderators because things in the company are new and constantly changing. It is super messy. The daily tasks are boring and repetitive, nothing amazing.

There is a lot of hype for this company but honestly it is like any other badly structure company or like any other vendor in terms of work life balance.


A typical day at work would be you entering the company and once the clock hits 8am you are supposed to be glued to your desk until its 5pm unless you have lunch break which will cause you food poisoning,,, but then micro managment falls in place if you went to toilet for more than 5 mins, look to get you to the bottom line, consider yourself working at a call center in india, but worst.. you dont get paid enough to live but get a load of work for 2 people.

No consideration for users, and management doesn't care about users, they only care about pleasing their superiors.

And, alot of scandals going on in the place
I wouldnt recommend it to my worst enemy

TikTok has consistently exceeded my expectations in terms of professionalism and innovation. The work environment is dynamic and nurturing, with a strong emphasis on employee development and well-being. Management is highly accessible and supportive, creating a culture of open communication and collaboration.
What sets this company apart is its commitment to staying ahead of industry trends, which not only benefits the business but also provides employees with a stimulating and forward-thinking work atmosphere. The company's dedication to sustainability and corporate social responsibility resonates deeply with my values.
While there's always room for improvement, such as enhancing interdepartmental communication, these minor areas do not overshadow the company's many strengths. 

You choose when you work and how many hours you put in. There’s no micromanagement regarding your clock-in time; the focus is entirely on the impact you deliver. What have I learned? Agility. At TikTok, you learn to pivot in minutes, not days. My leads act more like mentors than bosses. They provide the resources and the "why," then step back to let you handle the "how." The sheer speed of the platform. Because it’s a 24/7 global entity, the "always-on" nature of the content can be intense. You have to be disciplined about setting your own boundaries since the company won’t set them for you. Seeing an idea go from a brainstorm to a global trend in real-time. There is a specific rush in knowing that the work you do is reaching millions of people instantly.

I base in LA, due to pandemic lock down, we were working from home,  I start my working day at 8:30, I talk to my colleague in NY and Sao paulo in the earlier morning. I also prefer to deal with "system job" or work out my daily work plan before 10:30; Usually, I cascade down some task to team and spend some time with my team to make sure they crystal clear understand the "in and out" of task and get sufficient resource and support to accomplish their job.  I always get take advantage of lunch break to do some exercise (Go to gym or 7-8 mil running) before 2 pm, My schedule always pile up with lots of meeting. From 6 pm - 8 pm it is time to liaise with my counterpart in Beijing. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Software engineer 55 salaries reported	$170,618 per year
Partnership manager 11 salaries reported	$129,364 per year
Solutions manager 16 salaries reported	$110,800 per year
Product manager 24 salaries reported	$183,000 per year
Machine learning engineer 11 salaries reported	$152,909 per year

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