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A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

blog.coinbase.com

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Re: A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

#361

Post by codezero »

droopyEyelids wrote: post #296
codezero wrote: post #254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This assumes all roles at the company are equally able to exit the company in the midst of a global pandemic and find opportune work with the same growth opportunities, salary, and locality.

Who knows if official numbers are kept for our industry, but I haven't noticed a decrease in the pace of hiring. Bitcoin isn't hurting, either.

I work in analytics so have a wide range of customers - it's definitely up and down depending on the industry and I'd argue it's net down, but not if you are experienced / have a specialization.

Ecommerce is booming, but you're not likely to get a job in support/services which is likely already filled with experienced folks at most companies, and isn't likely to churn in a pandemic.

There are a lot of pockets like this, but they mostly benefit software engineers and more experienced roles. It's pretty common on HN for folks to assume that everyone has the role/job fluidity as your average tech person, or worse, your average software engineer.

Lots of folks "in tech" aren't really deeply into tech, so it's even more difficult for them to navigate a chaotic time.

Re: A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

#362

Post by thundergolfer »

nunja wrote: post #321
lawnchair_larry wrote: post #46

I am beyond sick of political activists in the workplace, so I hope this trend catches on.

Me too. I can't see why staying in my comfort zone is regarded as political. One solution is to just get comfy. No politics involved, just plain survivalism, nothing wrong.

It’s political because a number of hugely important issues call us all to action (child poverty, climate change, homelessness) and those issues are and will continue to put vulnerable people in danger of death and suffering. Staying in your comfort zone is likely an expression of indifference to them as vanishingly few people are comfortable when tackling these problems.

You might adopt a political position that your privileged position of safety and comfort is not subject to any particular obligations to engage with others and become involved in society’s problems, but that would be politics all the same.

Re: A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

#363

Post by scottlocklin »

yeetawayhn wrote: post #277
yokaze wrote: post #188

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I see it the other way around. (Almost) everything is political. The mission of the company is not disjoint from the society it is embedded in. Things have become divisive by being able to ignore and blend out the opposing views. By not talking and listening to one another. This is just one more step in that direction. Funnily enough, I think it has been extrapolated by Neal Stephenson in Diamond Age. We will end up…

If everything is political, then nothing is.

"Everything is political" is literally the working definition of totalitarianism.

Re: A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

#364

Post by booleandilemma »

arawnx wrote: post #197
BurningFrog wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And so the sorting into apolitical and leftist companies can begin! It's probably for the best.

Isn't it interesting that the crowd fighting for liberation & equity are mysteriously up against... the apolitical crowd? When the dichotomy is ethical realism vs. pragmatism, you have to ask yourself who's actually operating like a religion, who's actually a dogmatist in liberator's clothing.

Nah. I’m one of the “apolitical” crowd. I have all sorts of weird, controversial opinions, but I simply leave them at the door and do the job I’m paid to do.

Re: A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

#365

Post by throwaway894345 »

rednerrus wrote: post #330

My company is becoming increasingly political and it's terrible. I'd gladly go work at a company where I didn't have to engage with endless political activism. If I want to hear everyone's opinions on everything, I'd find their facebook page or the HN usernames and follow them.

My last company was trending in a similar direction. They would allow one ideological group to post completely unsubstantiated political claims, but opposing views were not allowed to be presented at all, even if they were thoroughly researched (this wasn't "official" policy, of course). Note that while I'm not a lawyer, I suspect that these permitted ideological viewpoints were sufficiently sexist and racist as to open the company up to some legal liability.

Re: A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

#366

Post by hnracer »

dangus wrote: post #219
giancarlostoro wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My only question is what are employees proposing CoinBase takes a stance over? If you want something like cryptocurrencies to thrive you can't be overly policing them, that's not your job as a company. Your job is not a political platform unless you work with politicians on their campaigns or are a politician / other form of politically affiliated / influenced company. Politics can make people feel extremely uncomfor…

I made another longer comment about it on this thread. The gist of it is that a competent HR department can make a statement without directly committing support to any particular organization or group that they aren’t comfortable with. Saying “I refuse to comment and you’re not allowed to comment” is the worst way to go about it, literally anything would be better. There are also ways to train on empathy, bias, and g…

Regarding bias training that you mentioned, the Heterodox Academy did a literature review and concluded that there isn't adequate evidence to conclude efficacy and if anything the effects are deleterious on workplace cohesion.

Re: A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

#368

Post by dragonwriter »

scottlocklin wrote: post #363
yeetawayhn wrote: post #277

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If everything is political, then nothing is.

"Everything is political" is literally the working definition of totalitarianism.

> "Everything is political" is literally the working definition of totalitarianism.

No, its not.

"Everything must be directed by the coercive power of the state" is. The former does not imply the latter (the scope of the coercive power of the state is, itself, a political issue.)

Re: A follow up to Coinbase being a mission focused company

#370

Post by TedShiller »

titanomachy wrote: post #338
TedShiller wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. I think there are only two options for a company: 1) don't allow any activism in the company 2) allow ALL types of activism in the company Right now, it seems most companies only allow liberal activism but not conservative activism. This is a recipe for problems because it's arbitrary and not democratic.

Do companies have an obligation to be democratic? Are democratic companies common? Protected classes aside, if I start a company I can choose to hire or exclude whomever I choose. I could start a company that only hires registered Republicans, or only people who can't stand the taste of bananas. If this turns out to be a bad business decision (which it probably is), the market will punish me and I'll eventually lose…

They do not have an obligation. However, employees will feel it is unfair if their side is not heard as much as the other side.
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