The Trade Desk reviews

TTD talks a lot about culture but I don't think they actually know what that is. On the surface it may seem great but when you actually delve deeper there are really big issues that no one wants to address. For example, upper management is a complete joke. Most of them don't want to be managers but were put in those positions because they've been there the longest. Along with all the other "managers", I would say only a handful are qualified. This is taking into account all the offices across the world. They are put in those positions without actually wanting to be in a management spot. Lots of people take advantage of expensing things, it's shocking. There are people who work hard and are really smart. There are others that are just plain awful human beings but don't get fired because they have friends or are connected with managers and upper management. Reading this you may be inclined to think TTD is pretty great, but talk to some of the actual people who work there because most of these "awesome, amazing" reviews aren't real. TTD has real issues a lot of people with actual power don't want to address.

I agree with the other review of "it was great until it wasn't". I loved my first 2.5 years at TTD but then it took a nose dive when COVID hit and I realized how much of a cult this company is. First, terrible middle managers. So many unhappy employees because of these new middle managers that were hired externally and lie about what they do on a day to day basis. If you have a terrible manager, good luck you'll never be able to move teams nor get promoted. No matter how much feedback you provide to their boss, HR and leadership, that person will never be fired because they'd rather have someone terrible at their job than no one and risk losing high performers because of it. Second, this is a boy's club and you'll only see success if you're in the inner circle which is comprised of 90% males. There is high turnover of female leadership and stealth firings (6 female leadership stealth firings to 1 male stealth firing in the 4 years I was there) whereas under performing male leaders continue to enjoy their cushy jobs while everyone that reports to them is questioning why they're still at the company. Third, below industry standard pay and bonuses. Have historically made up for it with soaring stocks but that's a thing of the past. Fourth, no career progression unless you're in the inner circle. The expectation is do the job above you + yours for 12+ months before you are ever considered for a promotion. And a promotion is 5-8% salary bump which is nothing compared to competitors. Fifth, there used to be a strong TTD culture but with remote work, that is a thing of the past. OGs stick with OGs and newbies constantly feel like outsiders unless they work 24/7 to "prove themselves". If you ask people why they stay, ~80% will tell you because of stocks even though they dislike their day to day work. Sixth, terrible work/life balance especially in NYC. Expected to work from 8AM-6PM+ with no breaks. Constant slacks and emails late into the night and early morning. Leadership is all talk and no action on implementing a better work/life balance