Daniel McKinnon, who has worked as a product manager with both Meta Platforms Inc. META and Alphabet Inc.’s GOOGL GOOG Google, shared insights into the work-life balance at both companies.
What Happened: McKinnon, who worked at Meta from 2018 to 2022 and was then at Google for two years, before returning to Meta in February to work on the company’s Ray-Ban AI glasses, highlighted the differences between the two tech giants in a blog post last month.
McKinnon noted that while both companies are great for product managers, there are key differences in work-life balance and compensation. He suggested that Meta might be a better fit for those seeking growth at the expense of stress and pressure, while Google could be a great place for those prioritizing work-life balance.
“If you want to prioritize work-life balance, stability, and job security, Google could be a great place for you,” he wrote.
McKinnon also highlighted differences in compensation structures, project opportunities, company transparency, “expression” in the workplace, career ladder, and the role of product managers versus software engineers at the two companies.
For instance, in terms of compensation, McKinnon stated that Meta distributes its Restricted Stock Unit or RSU evenly across four years, whereas Google allocates its grants differently by concentrating 70% of the stock within the initial two years of employment.
“Refreshers at Google are significantly smaller than Meta for the same level and role and performance multipliers are much scarcer,” he wrote. However, a representative from Google contested McKinnon’s claim that employees receive lower compensation annually due in part to the absence of additional bonuses or stock refreshers for those with a “significant impact” rating, reported Business Insider.
According to McKinnon, Google CEO Sundar Pichai’s responses to employees lacked the same level of openness as those of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He noted that compensation at Google is also less predictable, and obtaining feedback from leadership is more challenging compared to the situation at Facebook.
He also stated that career advancement appears to occur more rapidly at Meta compared to Google, where progression frequently relies on seniority.
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Why It Matters: Meta’s first-quarter revenue of $36.45 billion, up 27% year-over-year, beat the Street consensus estimate of $36.16 billion. However, the company’s guidance and higher costs impacted its stock.
On the other hand, Google’s parent company, Alphabet, reported a 15% year-over-year increase in its first-quarter revenue to $80.539 billion, beating the consensus estimate of $78.594 billion. The company also reported quarterly earnings of $1.89 per share, surpassing analyst estimates of $1.51 per share.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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