Two and a Half Years at ByteDance US E-commerce

I just finished reading a 16.000+ word account of a Chinese born former R&D team manager’s 2.5 years at TikTok Shop US. It sheds some interesting insights into the issues at Chinese Tech companies in the US in general and TikTok Shop US specifically, and echoes reports on the issues at TikTok Shop UK reported a few years ago.

I asked Google Notebook to create a summary, which you can find below.

If you prefer to read the original Chinese text, you can find it here: ichaoqi.com/xinchao/202…

Based on the sources provided, several overarching factors contributed significantly to the author's disillusionment during their two and a half years in ByteDance's US e-commerce division.

Initially, the author joined ByteDance with high hopes of making a contribution to Chinese enterprises and being a pioneer in a new battlefield after working at Amazon for nearly 8 years. However, this hopeful outlook soon gave way to the realisation that they were just a "screw, screwed in wherever others wanted", marking the beginning of their disillusionment journey.

A major contributing factor was the pervasive chaos and instability within the organisation. The author experienced constant changes, including rapid adjustments to departmental reporting lines and frequent replacement of partners, leading to an unclear team positioning. Senior management changes were frequent, intensifying the work pressure and requirements. This fast-paced environment, while initially exciting, became disorienting due to the lack of clear direction and stability.

The collision of Chinese and American cultures created significant friction. Differences were evident in development processes, where domestic teams prioritised speed over aspects like code review and unit tests, while the US team valued quality processes. This led to the US team being perceived as inefficient. Management philosophies also differed, with Chinese managers being more extensive and focused on business/technical influence, while American managers emphasised individual employee development and team culture. The author felt that power remained firmly in the hands of a few individuals in China. Additionally, cross-time zone collaboration often resulted in late-night meetings for the US team, a pain point many domestic leaders didn't seem to fully address. Strategic differences at the top level about whether to be closer to the overseas market or centralise R&D in China also caused divergence and were seen as a potential time bomb.

The compliance requirements, particularly the isolated TTP (Trusted Third Party) environment and the USDS (US Data Security) team [1], acted as "shackles of efficiency". These necessary constraints significantly slowed down development, testing, and debugging processes compared to working in China. The reliance on the USDS team, who often lacked business context, added further delays. The author also noted reliability issues with the Oracle Cloud TTP environment. The constant struggle against these compliance hurdles while facing hard deadlines was tiring.

The system of OKR (Objectives Key Results) and project management was perceived as chaotic despite the fast pace. The initial bimonthly OKRs were overwhelming, even after changing to quarterly. Project priorities were subject to battles (P0, P00, P000) and frequent "urgent insertion requirements" from management, often disrupting plans. This environment required constant adaptation and often resulted in projects being decided and changed quickly, leading to fatigue.

Major reorganisations, particularly one in early 2023 triggered by the impact of Temu, were perceived as purges. The author felt that the person in charge of international e-commerce R&D bore the blame for slow development, leading to their demotion and replacement of many of their direct reports by those from the new leader's direct lineage. Although the author's department initially seemed unaffected, a subsequent reorganisation in early 2024 led to the dismemberment of their department and their team being cut in half. The author felt like a "liar" when the stated principle of "people follow the project" was quickly disregarded for some team members, particularly non-Chinese speaking colleagues. An absurd episode involving a student with a pre-performance rating being nearly rejected by the receiving team further highlighted the chaos and favouritism.

Finally, and perhaps most significantly, the author experienced increasing marginalization under new leadership. After a reorganisation, despite being told they would continue to lead the US team and potentially take on cross-team tasks, their scope was gradually cut further. This culminated in a sudden performance warning and feedback about having a low "sense of presence". The author felt this reflected unrealistic expectations to be an "all-round superman" or an "extra", and that their contributions were not valued in the new structure. This personal experience of being sidelined, coupled with what was perceived as cold treatment and a confusingly discounted bonus upon their departure, solidified the author's disillusionment and decision to leave.

In summary, the author's disillusionment stemmed from the gap between initial high hopes and the reality of operating within a chaotic, rapidly changing environment marked by intense cultural conflicts, inefficient compliance hurdles, arbitrary project management, disruptive reorganisations, and ultimately, personal marginalization under new leadership.

- Ed

[1] These basically refer to the setup of ‘Project Texas’.