131–140 of 684 posts
"The guilt I felt after that, and shame even for my behavior, well it was real." Why? If they knew about the program and potential, then they might have felt the same way. They games management plays are the real issue. Edit: Why downvote? The article even says the way the program worked caused issues.
Feelings of entitlement often lead to anger and sadness.
When I worked at eBay, we had a bonus program based on company revenue. It was around 6% of your salary max and managers got around 25% max based on the same formula. For the first few years, you could count on getting a max bonus every quarter. To the point where most everyone who worked there had always gotten one. And the one quarter, we didn't get the max bonus. In fact, I don't think we got it all. People scream…
Is this natural dynamics in an increasingly large company? As a company grows, individual's impact diminishes and so does visibility, and revenue per employee dwindles. Consequently, resources increasingly concentrate to the top. That's why we hear Microsoft's engineers below level 68 complain about pay, and Amazon's entry-level engineers are known for their relatively small package. Ebay's situation was probably eve…
I worked there a long time ago. :) This happened right as they peaked in growth and started slowing down.
In my last job I worked at a company that paid slightly below the market rate, not including the bonus. At the time I got the job, I didn't realise that I was already being significantly underpaid. I thought it was a bit low but didn't realise the extent of it. So when I got the new job, I was blown over by the huge jump in salary and couldn't be happier. What was better? I was entitled to receive each year up to a 1…
It's not unlimited, and you shouldn't start off your employer-employee relationship with an obvious lie. Set a policy and make it clear that you are exchanging x dollars for y amount of work.
I actually think bonuses and equity grants are terrible for comapany morale. I've seen it many times, and heard many more stories. On top of the issue in this story, there are others too. For example, if someone wants to leave, but the bonus or vesting is coming up, they will stay, and you don't want people on a project who don't want to be there. As another example I know people who work at companies that are going…
Incentives happen because they are empirically effective. I would contend that the issue is less the content of the incentives but rather the perception of fairness. If everyone is aware how the bonuses work and feels their 'fair' share is obtained, then it just becomes another part of the calculus. I speculate as a non-manager that bonuses are a good way (in the federal contracting realm, from the company perspectiv…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Wait what? Who gets the tax break there?
It should be a wash either way unless someone falls into some weird edge case where deductions are limited. The corporation is deducting the payment either way, either as comp paid out to employees or as a charitable donation directly.
I didn’t have a dog in that race bc I couldn’t stand android so I wasn’t even claiming my gift previously but it was interesting to watch the political pickle they got themselves in
This is literally a plot point in Christmas Vacation. Is also why I think it is silly for startups to provide too many perks. It sets obvious precedent and will upset more folks when you stop. Find ways to invest in the company so that success is it's own perk. If the company truly has more, work that into raises where you clearly tie the income to the success of the company.
> Is also why I think it is silly for startups to provide too many perks Should the opposite be true as well? Startup employees going home at 5 and fighting unreasonable schedules?
When I worked at eBay, we had a bonus program based on company revenue. It was around 6% of your salary max and managers got around 25% max based on the same formula. For the first few years, you could count on getting a max bonus every quarter. To the point where most everyone who worked there had always gotten one. And the one quarter, we didn't get the max bonus. In fact, I don't think we got it all. People scream…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
20+ donuts, for how long? If daily and at $1/nut, that comes out to $100 per week. Was it just on some occasions or every morning?
That is a grossly over-exaggerated price for donuts imo.
When I worked at eBay, we had a bonus program based on company revenue. It was around 6% of your salary max and managers got around 25% max based on the same formula. For the first few years, you could count on getting a max bonus every quarter. To the point where most everyone who worked there had always gotten one. And the one quarter, we didn't get the max bonus. In fact, I don't think we got it all. People scream…
This is literally a plot point in Christmas Vacation. Is also why I think it is silly for startups to provide too many perks. It sets obvious precedent and will upset more folks when you stop. Find ways to invest in the company so that success is it's own perk. If the company truly has more, work that into raises where you clearly tie the income to the success of the company.
The typical startup problem like the above is a more extreme example of people mailing it in until bonuses are out: people mailing it in until the startup is acquired or goes public because the company is doing well and they lose their shares/options if they quit