A day in the life of a 20-something on TikTok who works in tech might start with free breakfast and a drink. Go out for a long lunch break right away. You can go back to the office and visit the nap room or the Harry Potter themed meeting space. Work should be finished up. Go out at 5PM.
An employee of Linkedin makes face masks for a self-care moment, followed by hand towels and kombucha in the office. A day at work for an employee includes scooters, rooftop views, hanging out with a dog, and meeting up with co-workers.
Tech girlie is the side of TikTok where lifestyle vlogging has given rise to a cottage industry of creators who make working in tech a key part of their personal brand. A standard format for the videos is cheery, upbeat background music, followed by quick shots of meeting slides, themed workrooms, and snack drawers. Many viewers pointed out how little work was shown in the videos, with some saying they were contemptuous and others saying they were longing. Many ask if you're hiring.
Tech workers have amassed millions of views on these videos. HR warnings and firings from tech firms have been linked to messy boundaries around filming at work. Corporations get free promotion, they just have to risk showing too much or revealing things they don't want people to see.
"We all have been flagged before at our company to be like, 'Hey, don't do that.'" It's important for creators to balance crafting their own brand and free expression with demands from their employers that limit what can be shared.
Companies are trying to be as strict as possible while building out policies and expectations for their employees, and what is allowed and what isn't always clear for both sides.
The filming of lobbies, entrances, and security measures is not allowed at some companies. Some people don't allow filming at desks if the computer screen is blurry. In conversations with HR, co-workers, or managers, creators often toe the line. After seeing other creators post similar content, security and safety teams are angry that some creators have shared videos giving tours of offices and workspace.
She has developed tactics to deliver content to followers and keep her employers happy as she has cultivated her own brand of tech industry vlogging. She avoids talking about her compensation, and if she is having trouble at work, she chooses to talk about it after the fact, as she did in her most popular video, a 14-minute breakdown of all the reasons she quit her job at TikTok.
He is a product manager at Discord and has made videos about his first week at the company.
Lucy Anthony, senior counsel for employment at the company, said that employees who are also creators are expected to hold their responsibilities as shareholders and to each other.
Anthony says that the company's confidential information and employees are protected by the policies. It must be in accordance with the policies if employees speak on behalf of the company.
Anthony didn't say what policies Discord has.
Tech creators don't get fired because they can't get fired for respecting their company. One creator who occasionally makes videos about their work atgoogle says they mostly film the food at their job because showing their actual work isn't permitted
The employee who requested anonymity to speak freely about their company said that they had gotten backlash for filming too much food content. I can't show much of my actual work.
Tech workers who aren't hypervigilant have found themselves out of a job
A woman who goes by the name of "brokeass horsegirl" on TikTok makes off-the-cuff, unedited videos of her life. Serna, who worked at health tech company Visionable, was careful to never reveal the name of her employer on TikTok, instead speaking about her unconventional path in the industry and her experience being a remote employee.
Serna uploaded a short video to TikTok showing the coffee she spilled. Serna wasn't aware that a company meeting could be heard on her computer in the other room. Serna was fired the day after the video had only a few thousand views because she was negligent.
Serna says she was shocked when she told her story, because she never was reprimanded for anything. I was never told about my work. I didn't hear anything about my performance at work.
Visionable did not reply.
Serna says that her TikTok presence is part of her appeal and that she was not warned about it. Serna said the company had celebrated her TikTok presence internally which grew rapidly this year to over 150,000.
The companies that employ creators benefit from their following.
Serna was fired from TikTok in September and her followers were mostly supportive. Serna admits she made a mistake by recording the video, but she doesn't think companies are prepared to have employees with large internet followings. Serna said a few other creators in tech contacted her after she went public about her firing.
While creators build followings from their tech jobs, the companies that hire them benefit from the viral videos showing happy, well-paid employees extolling the benefits of their jobs The account strategist praised the company for bringing rescue dogs and said it gave them an instant boost of dopamine. A TikTok sponsored by LinkedIn follows a different employee from the office to an event and the creator expresses her gratitude for having two dream jobs.
Serna says that her followers asked if her company was hiring when she mentioned the name of her former employer.
I said, 'You wanted me for your good press.' Serna says she's a good press. I don't have a college degree, I'm a young woman, I have a disability, and I work from home.
The reality of working a 9 to 5 job can be obscured by the proliferation of content that only shows luxurious perks. Some people choose to film when there is something interesting going on. Other creators will wear the same outfit on the weekend and pretend to work because they are so busy. The fluff content doesn't show how generous office offerings can be.
They don't make their campuses that way because they love their employees. It's made that way so that they can keep you there.
The company didn't reply to the request. There are clear internal policies that apply to all employees at LinkedIn. When they choose to share their experiences in communities they care about, we make them available.
Women, people of color, and other traditionally underrepresented groups in the industry can benefit from the tech girlie genre of content.
A TikTok creator who considers herself a micro-influencer sprinkles in workday content with other unrelated vlogs. In April, while working as a contractor at Apple, she posted a video of her first day on the job, showing her morning routine and commute along with snippets of the building, an in-office pastry bar, and lunch with co-workers. The video titled "Day in the life of a Black girl working in tech" has amassed nearly 400,000 views with hundreds of comments asking for career advice and questions about her job and daily routine
80% of the people that reached out to me or commented were black women. It was important for me to connect with other black women so that I could encourage them to work in this industry.
She wants to give others like her free career resources. After getting a lot of requests for advice, Shih set up a server for tech professionals and hopefuls to meet and connect. She says making videos like the one explaining why she quit TikTok is her way of being transparent.
She says she did everything by trial and error. It would have changed my outcome so much if I had told myself to do something.
She lost her job at Apple when her contract wasn't renewed. A trio of clips documenting her job loss has been viewed 150,000 times.
She is currently working at a marketing agency and making videos for TikTok. She says techinfluencers are an important way for companies to get in front of potential applicants who might not otherwise look for a job in the industry.
Imagine if there weren't any people of color in the tech industry. A lot of people are on TikTok. They won't know that there are other options if they don't know about it.
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