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If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

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Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#431

Post by wellareyousure »

jvanderbot wrote: post #65
rockostrich wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From what I've read the past few weeks, Elon is mostly just a figurehead at SpaceX at this point and it seems like only his cultural presence (read: making everyone work long hours) is still around. Not sure about Tesla but it seems like it's about the same besides very high level business direction decisions.

I've heard from tesla autopilot engineers that he just comes in and lays everyone off if he doesn't like their approach. The self-driving teams have apparently cycled through engineers like crazy. I'd love to get a current, internal confirmation on this.

Just consider how hard it is to find good people for a startup. What if indeed, most tech workers everywhere are bad? It doesn’t mean you observe lots of turnover. But it makes it possible that a company is really successful because of it, rather than despite it.

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#432

Post by jokethrowaway »

fknorangesite wrote: post #213
sidewndr46 wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm guessing they were just offered a half-decent severance and didn't want to work there anyways?

> and didn't want to work there anyways? Who would , anymore?

I totally would.

I'm tired of working in woke corporations with their fake friendliness, stupid rituals and tons of people doing nothing. You anyway end up wasting time at work so it's not like you can't go to the beach instead but you end up with nothing productive being done.

The only cons is relocation and being an employee, I like my tax setup and quality of life here. Also, not being free to work remote.

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#433

Post by curiousgeorgio »

qwytw wrote: post #376
curiousgeorgio wrote: post #341

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. To me, the genius is just his courage to actually do it while probably feeling like the entire world is against him. A lot of leaders might come up with similar plans, but execution in the face of so much opposition is what separates Elon from the rest.

It hardly offsets the fact that he massively overpaid for Twitter in the first place. For 44 billion he could have easily handpicked a team and built a new product without all the issues Twitter has. He'd have to actually compete against Twitter but that should be too hard for a genius.

Building a Twitter clone is so trivial that it's basically become the new todo list app for people showing off any new web technology.

The value of Twitter has nothing to do with the product, and everything to do with the name and market share. For that reason, it's been almost impossible for any other alternative to call itself a real Twitter competitor.

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#434

Post by CoastalCoder »

crooked-v wrote: post #350
helen___keller wrote: post #309

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's trying to build a culture of engineer abuse. I'm sure he'll succeed in building it. The game industry manages it, for example. You can abuse and burn out engineers if that's what you really want. That said, I wouldn't say abused engineers are particularly more productive. He can work them 9/9/6 while he's at it, I don't think that'll help Twitter succeed.

The problem for him here is that instead of boiling the frog, he's gone straight to chasing the frog around with a blowtorch.

Apologies for this un-HN-like response, but that image is making me laugh out loud in the privacy of my home office. I'm glad nobody can hear me.

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#435

Post by nemo44x »

orange_joe wrote: post #395
nemo44x wrote: post #288

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's pretty much what they have been doing since the acquisition. It's based on 80/20 rule thinking and is taught in MBA programs. First they dropped orgs and teams they just didn't find useful any longer like large swaths of the HR team, marketing, etc. Then they asked leaders to identify the bottom ~30% of performers and culled them. Now you're left with the "better half" of the company. But Musk isn't through yet…

Why would top performers stick around after being told they’ll be forced to work long hours without any benefit? It seems like only the desperate would stay. From what we’ve read the majority of those who stayed did so because they are on visas, meaning they would be deported if they left the company.

It's a good question, especially since he has been so aggressive in this reorg that it would be very unsettling to many people. I'm sure he lost some because of it.

However, I would imagine that everything we are hearing is not the whole story in terms of what the identified top performers are hearing. They are likely getting 1-on-1 calls, comp adjustments, and promises on how they will be able to build the future. For some that won't be enough I'm sure. But for many it will be and this is the core - these are the people Elon builds Twitter with. The other ones are sent a loyalty notice and if they stay, then great because they know their orders now.

Elon did tweet he feels most of the best people are staying, so there's that. And he doesn't seem too nervous about things. But only he would know I guess.

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#436

Post by CrypticShift »

bena wrote: post #370
CrypticShift wrote: post #220

IMHO (my first and I hope last Elon comment), at a higher level of cognition, Elon is just playing two simple games: maximum buzz (media game), and maximum control (politics game). All his public persona, including all that pre-acquisition drama, is just for maximum buzz (Who cares about a few hundred millions ?) All this post-acquisition drama is just for maximum control (over Twitter and ?). If this is the case, so…

He already has maximum control of Twitter. There is nothing more he can do to control Twitter. He is at maximum Twitter control.

Twitter is not just a corporation you buy. At the very least, it is also the life and labour of all it employees. So you can never have absolute control. There is always resistance.

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#437

Post by eropple »

sparrish wrote: post #183
drchopchop wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lawyers and bankers a) don't fly on their own dime, b) have huge potential financial upside in getting those deals done.

These employees are in the same situation. a) will be using Twitter expenses to fly (company credit card or reimbursed) b) may keep their 6-figure jobs.

Could you explain to me who you think is processing reimbursements when AR/AP seems to have all quit? Ditto for company cards--most company cards I've had have fallback personal obligations if the company refuses to pay for a charge. What assurances do any of these people have that they won't be stuck with the check?

A Twitter developer can get a "6-figure job" just about anywhere pretty quickly, and many can get ones that haven't just gutted their total comp by going private. What's the point, exactly?

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#438

Post by falcolas »

pmoriarty wrote: post #268
maxbond wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

At my last exit interview, my CEO was asking me how he could improve his understanding of the engineering team. I threw out the idea that he could meet with people for 15 minutes on a rotation. He explained that he couldn't do that without terrifying people. Just because people are scared of the CEO doesn't mean most CEOs weaponize this into a tool of micromanagement.

It's a sad comment on the corporate world that so many are terrified of those they work for.

It's a learned helplessness response. I've been burned by enough "yes man" management that I've given up trying to do more than necessary for management. Want feedback? Sorry, I don't have any.

Fuck, I've gotten a reprimand for pointing out how Musk is perhaps not the best role model when someone mentioned they idolized him. That learned me.

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#439

Post by pmoriarty »

tppiotrowski wrote: post #353
gigel82 wrote: post #225

Comments talking about how Musk will look at those screenshots of code and somehow determine an employee's worth are hilarious. This obviously has nothing to do with evaluating a developer's quality; this is a classic move dictators do to determine who has chugged the kool-aid all the way (who are the most loyal and subservient underlings willing to demean themselves to this level). Nothing more, nothing less.

Interesting. I find git blame sufficient to assess engineering talent on a shared code base. Sometimes I read through a file and there's clarity and other times it's spaghetti. The ones who write with clarity are the ones I want my desk next to. Sometimes they are not even the ones that management is promoting.

> Sometimes they are not even the ones that management is promoting.

According to The Gervais Principle[1]:

"The Peter Principle states that all people are promoted to the level of their incompetence. It is based on the assumption that future promotions are based on past performance. The Peter Principle is wrong for the simple reason that executives aren’t that stupid, and because there isn’t that much room in an upward-narrowing pyramid. They know what it takes for a promotion candidate to perform at the to level. So if they are promoting people beyond their competence anyway, under conditions of opportunity scarcity, there must be a good reason.

"Scott Adams, seeing a different flaw in the Peter Principle, proposed the Dilbert Principle: that companies tend to systematically promote their least-competent employees to middle management to limit the damage they can do. This again is untrue. The Gervais principle predicts the exact opposite: that the most competent ones will be promoted to middle management. Michael Scott was a star salesman before he become a Clueless middle manager. The least competent employees (but not all of them -- only certain enlightened incompetents) will be promoted not to middle management, but fast-tracked through to senior management. To the Sociopath level.

"And in case you are wondering, the unenlightened under-performers get fired."

[1] - https://www.ribbonfarm.com/2009/10/07/the-gervais-principle-...

Re: If you (still) work at Twitter and you can code, head to the HQ now

#440

Post by scarface74 »

tppiotrowski wrote: post #353
gigel82 wrote: post #225

Comments talking about how Musk will look at those screenshots of code and somehow determine an employee's worth are hilarious. This obviously has nothing to do with evaluating a developer's quality; this is a classic move dictators do to determine who has chugged the kool-aid all the way (who are the most loyal and subservient underlings willing to demean themselves to this level). Nothing more, nothing less.

Interesting. I find git blame sufficient to assess engineering talent on a shared code base. Sometimes I read through a file and there's clarity and other times it's spaghetti. The ones who write with clarity are the ones I want my desk next to. Sometimes they are not even the ones that management is promoting.

Really? In every large tech company whose leveling guidelines I’ve seen (including my own), “being able to code well” only separates junior developers from mid level developers.

After that it’s about “scope” and “impact”. Looking at the git blame tells you nothing about the skillset it takes to be successful at any large tech company at a senior level.

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