Are transfers to other offices possible with Shutterstock?

Perks, work environment, amazing team

Opportunities for advancement in company

Great Benefits, Competitive salary, Encourages quick decision making.

Cons Culture of fear and retaliation - speaking up about issues leads to isolation and targeted behavior. HR's leadership creates hostile conditions through informal channels and workplace politics for those who don't align with their preferred narrative. Gossip is used as a tool on a regular basis to force people out. Ineffective strategy and accountability - initiatives are started but never completed, with elaborate communications masking the lack of actual progress. Time and money are wasted on optics while real organizational issues go unaddressed and somehow the Chief People Officer takes credit for completing them. Biased leadership practices - clear pattern of favoritism where only those in the HR's inner circle receive opportunities for advancement and support while others face significant barriers to growth and success. Toxic environment - HR has created an inner circle that shields each other from accountability while actively working against others' success. Major personnel issues are consistently ignored, leading to good employees leaving while problematic behaviors continue unchecked. The function meant to support employee well-being has instead become the source of workplace toxicity. Overreach of authority - The Chief People Officer's leadership frequently interferes in operational areas outside their expertise, causing disruption and inefficiency across multiple departments as seen with the divisional model. Everything is perceived to be change management yet change management is about as solid as a screen door on a submarine. This has led to significant confusion and a general loss of confidence in leadership. Leadership has now dictated that there is clarity in strategy and the divisional model is fully in play. Thanks to HR for the script. Let's call it for what it is. Clarity on strategy is like chasing a ghost—everyone talks about it, but no one’s actually seen it. Reducing distractions somehow managed to add more distractions—now it’s like trying to untangle headphones in the dark. We don't say it out loud where anyone can hear you - you will be hunted down and read the riot act. Faster delivery for customers? More like faster confusion for teams—it’s a race with no map and everyone running in different directions. Delivering faster feels like sprinting on a treadmill—plenty of effort, but we’re not actually going anywhere. Great at HR? Not So Much: The joke is that HR is supposed to champion employee well-being but the only thing being championed is their own influence at the expense of all else. Glassdoor Note: Previous reviews highlighting these issues have mysteriously disappeared. This platform needs to maintain honest feedback to drive necessary change. This review reflects real experiences that deserve to be shared for transparency and accountability.

Employee Talent Pool: The staff at Shutterstock is a remarkable blend of knowledgeable and talented individuals, creating a vibrant and skillful work environment. Skill Development Opportunities: It’s an excellent place for those looking to enhance their technical skills, offering ample opportunities for professional growth in this area.

Frequent Upper-Management Changes: The company suffers from a high turnover rate in upper management, leading to a lack of consistent leadership. Drastic Direction Shifts: Each new corporate management team tends to dramatically change the company’s direction, causing instability. Regular Layoffs: The company has experienced numerous rounds of layoffs, contributing to a sense of job insecurity. Poor Developer-Designer Synergy: There’s a notable lack of collaboration and synergy between developers and designers. Deteriorating Healthcare Benefits: The quality of healthcare benefits has been declining year over year. Political Climate Affecting Promotions: Advancement within the company seems heavily influenced by office politics rather than merit. Challenging Work Environment: Employees often feel like they’re performing a high-stakes balancing act, with constant content shifts and high demands. Overextended Direct Managers: Managers are often handling multiple teams, leading to a spread-thin leadership and lack of focused guidance.

Shutterstock offers a global platform that empowers creatives like myself to monetize their work on a flexible schedule. The Contributor Portal is intuitive and relatively easy to navigate, making uploading and organizing content efficient. The company provides opportunities like the Create Fund, which supports underrepresented voices in visual storytelling. I’ve found Shutterstock’s commitment to diverse content refreshing—they actively seek visuals that reflect real, lived experiences. Payments are consistent and transparent, and their team is generally responsive when issues arise.

Contributor earnings have decreased over the years due to changes in the royalty structure; the effort-to-reward ratio can be discouraging for some. There’s limited direct interaction or community engagement between Shutterstock and its contributors beyond occasional newsletters or programs. Algorithm updates can significantly impact content visibility without much explanation.

I liked the people, other than that there wasn't much to it. Oh and benefits are pretty good.

Where shall I start? Inexperienced leaders and managers - my manager was consistently confused. Senior leadership is abysmal, complete disconnect with the rest of the company. Odd visits from the leadership team in the states but other than that the ones coming from Berlin just sits in meetings all day and doesn't interact with you. 0 strategies and planning from leaders, only advice from them is work harder to hit your targets. How is that helpful? If people are struggling, implement new strategies or ways of earning revenue. 0 career mapping, your manager would ask you what you want to do just because they have to. No career progression at all in this company, they would rather hire external managers rather than promote within. You will literally be stuck in the same role forever, therefore, it just makes this a stepping stone company. It's a shame because there are genuinely talented individuals within the company that are not offered opportunities. There is clear favouritism from senior leadership, if you're a top performer, they will try and keep you in that position.