I applied for a role on the website and the recruiter scheduled a phone screen and the first round of interviews over zoom with a program manager. Copy pasting the email I sent to them after the phone screen with Recruiting. After conversing with the recruiter, I do not think I would like to move forward with the application process. A couple of points of feedback from my end(given that I worked for over 5 years at a major tech company in the bay area): - The recruiter called and did not give me any background about the position and the team before asking me about my experience. Neither did she voluntarily provide clarity on the role prior to me specifically asking about it. The description provided by the recruiter lacked the required context(I work within the domain and I am 100% sure she did not have the context). - The recruiter claimed that they can not share the compensation structure/breakup because TikTok is a privately held company. I found this to be a bit opaque and I highly doubt that talented individuals in the bay area would be interested to work in an opaque environment where you do not even share the breakup of the compensation. - TikTok as a company does not offer green card sponsorship prior to a performance review and the sponsorship decision is contingent on the individual's performance. This is rather shocking that they do not value the individual's personal security when they plan to make a major life change for the company. The policy is rather discriminatory towards immigrants seeking employment in the United States. Honestly, I was excited about the position and the product area but I do not think TikTok's work culture is a suitable fit based on my conversation with your recruiting team. I strongly recommend that you do not apply for a position at TikTok in the United States. Its a top-heavy culture that will feel like a jail cell once you join.

They arranged 3 rounds of interviews with all team members, not the hiring manager. I felt like it was not the typical process because one of them said they were changing the direction of this role.