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Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

medium.com

11–20 of 176 posts

Re: Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

#11
>Leadership did not want to stop development work to fix security issues, but they also could not be seen to be ignoring security issues.

>...So they would engage with the researchers, put on this big performance with meetings and field trips and PowerPoint decks,

>...and then DO NOTHING.

Re: Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

#13

I am all for leaders taking risks but talking to law enforcement without a lawyer or without contacting HR first (for professional matters) would probably be outside my limits.

US Digital Service (whom this person worked for) is under/within the Executive Office if the President. USDS folks have latitude others do not (this is from coffee with those who had a tour of duty and from interviews for a role within).

Re: Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

#15
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://outline.com/38sRfa

Serious question. How long before medium starts suing outline, archive.org and others?

Not sure. I do know it no longer works for NYT, and I imagine it's only a matter of time before it stops supporting other sites as well.

Re: Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

#16
post #2

> "No one else gets into these situations. It’s always you. If someone had told me that one of my employees was hunting white supremacists with the FBI I wouldn’t have to ask who it was because, of course it’s you. It’s always you. Why is it always you?" > The way you process risk and handle fear has more impact on what kind of career you have than any other single factor.

This actually plays out different than you may think.

The likely reason the author is the one who always ends up in these situations is because they eschew fear and are willing to take on difficult issues. Most other people, rationally, run from those issues.

From my personal experience, this actually works out well for everyone usually because people like me who are happy to wander into difficult things are doing it precisely because those things don't have other power players trying to lord over them. Everyone is running from it, so you can get a good amount of independent autonomy in dealing with it.

Re: Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

#17
Sorry, the story totally lost me after she was describing the interaction with the FBI. I did not easily take away some conclusion about what she had done wrong or what deep pile of shit she had just created for herself, or what on 2 paths she had just chosen incorrectly, or daringly?

(The paragraph ending, "I trusted the FBI to be good at their jobs." The next paragraph jumps right to generalizations, and I didn't clearly understand from her writing what problem did she just cause without knowing it?)

Without that spelled out, I have a hard time really being on board with the rest of the essay. Actually, it's almost like they're 2 different essays broken at that point above.

Anyone else experience the same issue in reading it?

Re: Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

#18
post #10

> The way you process risk and handle fear has more impact on what kind of career you have than any other single factor. Depends on how the organisations you are in value risk taking and fear. If your manager is running from death, your appetite for risk is not a positive.

If your boss is a muppet then you are fucked either way. Rule #1 is you have to trust your manager, if you don't then you need to make a change.

Re: Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

#19
post #6

Aww, after all that, we don't get to hear how the episode with the website and the white supremacists ends??

And who is the idiot? It was really interesting until it became extremely general and vague. It almost makes it sound like Matt Cutts is the idiot since he's the only specific manager mentioned.

Re: Why is this idiot running my engineering org?

#20
Fucking amazing. This was sitting right under my nose my entire life and I sensed it but didn't understand it. Now somebody finally wrote it down. I consider myself pretty courageous or at least indifferent to consequences (which may or may not be the same thing), but yeah that always seems to be the missing or limiting ingredient in every situation. Not that I'm biased or anything! Anyway this is going to be one of those rare days when I read something that's going to be a life-changer. And those don't happen that often at my ripe old age.
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