Growing pains, not all that glitters is gold - Anonymous employee Airbnb Employee Review

-- Lots of people are here for the wrong reasons. Whether people want to admit it or not, countless people are here for the equity, and won't hesitate to jump ship when things go south. There are prank emails titled "Important IPO Update" to get people's attention; I've overheard countless conversations with people 1) reminiscing about their old company and not willing to leave until they vest, 2) not being truly passionate about the product, or 3) directly comparing how much equity they got. The IPO is a constant question that's asked during all-hands and is frequently the most upvoted. -- The Kool-Aid here is stronger than ever. Buy into the cult or leave. A ton of people are hesitant or afraid to tell upper management about what they don't like about recent/upcoming product(s) such as Magical Trips. Several coworkers whom I've talked to and I have been part of conversations (even involving middle management) where people have openly voiced their concerns or complaints. -- Really poor transparency. Political. Depends on your team and YMMV. Your manager may verbally tell you that you're doing great and dole out compliments every so often, but you may be shocked when your performance reviews come out. -- "Culture" can be described as how well you embody the company's mission and core values, and is ridiculously subjective. Lots of talented people don't make the cut because they failed to make a good impression on the core values interviews. It's Airbnb's way of weeding out people who aren't a "good fit" for their clique. -- Very cliquey, feels like a frat. If you fit in, you'll like it. If you don't, you won't. Emphasis on drinking at company events. Overheard multiple people on different occasions making straight up sexist remarks during and after work. -- Poor work-life balance. People appear happy-go-lucky but many are in fact stressed out. Lyft drivers often tell me how people complain about work. Coworkers I've talked to complain about the constant pressure to do well for performance evaluations. -- Lots and lots of growing pains. Honestly not at all surprised they plunged to #35 on Glassdoor.