Pros
Remote work. That's about it.
Cons
Toptal is a toxic workplace with a fear-mongering, egomaniacal narcissist at its helm, who is filled with delusional ideas about the importance of his insignificant little company. This toxic culture stems from that because, as we know, it trickles down from the top. You can bust your gut, spill your blood, use your industry clout and expertise to promote Toptal, and it will be for nothing. Toptal takes it all for their benefit, with you getting zero recognition or appreciation, with the real possibility of being dumped in a second. You will also find yourself in a dead-end job with zero opportunity for career growth. The quality of the people and the resulting output has suffered immensely over the years. In late 2018 a popular co-founder left and everything went downhill from there. A major exodus of good people followed for several reasons. First, without fail, the company consistently hires the wrong people to head departments resulting in the exodus mentioned above. Second, they promote incompetent people from within. This stampede toward the middle, the sacrifice of what was a potentially good idea on the altar of the Peter principle, is leading to the destruction of the hard work (that took years to realize) of the few that did spill blood to make it happen. If you have integrity, a modicum of self-respect, and the impulse to do the best work possible, you will soon become dispirited, discouraged, and demoralized. The politics, the favoritism, the egos, the backstabbing, the sycophants —the list could go on, all the while the company professing to have a culture of high standards and incredible people. Don’t buy it. None of it is true. The only way to survive in this toxic environment is to drink the kool-aid. This is a company where only sycophants and booty-smoochers survive. It’s become a place where anyone with half a brain, high-end talent and skill, and solid industry expertise who speaks truth to power will be pushed out in no time. In my opinion, the company is so unhealthy, it will be dead within five years.
