Meet your new colleague, the office influencer

Corporate employees doubling as social media influencers could be the next big thing. Companies need to use them strategically.

- Nicole Chan

The rise of workplace content on TikTok is hard to ignore. Affectionately dubbed "WorkTok," hashtags like #WorkLife, #WorkTok, and #CorporateTikTok have amassed billions of views and turned the platform into a kind of digital water cooler—a place where creators chronicle everything from petty office politics to career tips.

With all this content so easily accessible, carefully worded mission statements, human resources jargon, and curated highlight reels may no longer cut it for the job seekers of tomorrow. What they're really looking for is authenticity and relatability: behind-the-scenes stories that show what it's really like to work at a company.

Enter: The office influencer. These are not influencers in the usual sense—there are no sponsored skincare hauls here—but a full-time corporate employee who shares on social media what work looks and feels like from the inside.

Think a Gen Z or millennial worker casually filming "day in the life" TikToks or Instagram Stories at their desk, sharing snippets of their team lunches, project milestones, and coffee runs.

They're not setting out to be brand ambassadors promoting the organization. They're just sharing their work life on their personal accounts the same way they would a weekend brunch or a trip abroad. And their content ends up going viral.

In most companies, these voices already exist. But very few are harnessing them strategically.

FROM HIGHLIGHT REELS TO HUMAN STORIES

For years, employer branding has leaned heavily on high-level messaging: "We empower our people." "We value diversity." "We're like a family."

But in reality, people want to know: What does that actually look like when life gets messy? What happens when I have a family emergency, or need time to care for my mental health? Can I be myself, and still succeed here?