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'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

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Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#11

Post by sriramk »

samstave wrote: post #7

I am amazed that anyone still works there. Are facebook and google continually inundated with Yahoo ex-pat applications? Anyone at Yahoo on HN that could provide a day-in-the-life? Or anyone from Yahoo have any stories of trying to find work elsewhere?

I left Yahoo three weeks ago to do my own thing. There are lots of talented people at Yahoo - there are not too many companies which deal with the kind of scale and tech Yahoo does and a lot of people like that. Some of them have been there for over a decade. What is happening to the company is very sad.

Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#12

Post by raganwald »

yumraj wrote: post #8

How deep? Will it include the board members :)

Very funny. When you hear the words “deep cut,” you envision starting at the top and cutting deep into the heart. But no, in business, “deep cuts” means starting sideways at the bottom and cutting straight across, leaving the top unmarked.

Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#13

Post by samstave »

sriramk wrote: post #11
samstave wrote: post #7

I am amazed that anyone still works there. Are facebook and google continually inundated with Yahoo ex-pat applications? Anyone at Yahoo on HN that could provide a day-in-the-life? Or anyone from Yahoo have any stories of trying to find work elsewhere?

I left Yahoo three weeks ago to do my own thing. There are lots of talented people at Yahoo - there are not too many companies which deal with the kind of scale and tech Yahoo does and a lot of people like that. Some of them have been there for over a decade. What is happening to the company is very sad.

>...there are not too many companies which deal with the kind of scale and tech Yahoo does and a lot of people like that"

Google, Facebook, Apple - all here in the bay area, all massive scale. Are yahooligans not flocking to these giants?

Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#15

Post by javajosh »

yumraj wrote: post #8

How deep? Will it include the board members :)

I also think this is an insightful comment. Very insightful. Yahoo! has a cadre of absolutely brilliant people working for it: it would be better to ditch the board entirely, and reform into a reverse-Y-combinator: take 5000 people and create 1000 startups with 5 ppl each.

Wow, actually this is a really good idea.

Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#16

Post by chollida1 »

samstave wrote: post #13
sriramk wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I left Yahoo three weeks ago to do my own thing. There are lots of talented people at Yahoo - there are not too many companies which deal with the kind of scale and tech Yahoo does and a lot of people like that. Some of them have been there for over a decade. What is happening to the company is very sad.

>...there are not too many companies which deal with the kind of scale and tech Yahoo does and a lot of people like that" Google, Facebook, Apple - all here in the bay area, all massive scale. Are yahooligans not flocking to these giants?

Well moving jobs, even for the most talented employees can be difficult for a number of reasons.

1) inertia, there is alot to be said for working at the same place for 10 years, you know the people, systems, and processes. By this time you might be 35 and married with a few kids. Often you don't know if you have the energy to go do it all over again.

2) fear of failure. If you've been somewhere and grown into a role as the go to person it can be a big blow to the ego to tell your friends you're going to go interview at google or facebook, only to be rejected.

3) moving sideways or taking a step backward. Just because you became a senior developer level 5 at yahoo doesn't mean you'd be able to do the same role at google or facebook. You may have to settle for a smaller role or even a pay cut to join those companies.

Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#17

Post by [deleted] »

javajosh wrote: post #15
yumraj wrote: post #8

How deep? Will it include the board members :)

I also think this is an insightful comment. Very insightful. Yahoo! has a cadre of absolutely brilliant people working for it: it would be better to ditch the board entirely, and reform into a reverse-Y-combinator: take 5000 people and create 1000 startups with 5 ppl each. Wow, actually this is a really good idea.

[deleted]

Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#18

Post by jbarham »

yurylifshits wrote: post #9
samstave wrote: post #7

I am amazed that anyone still works there. Are facebook and google continually inundated with Yahoo ex-pat applications? Anyone at Yahoo on HN that could provide a day-in-the-life? Or anyone from Yahoo have any stories of trying to find work elsewhere?

Green card process can keep some people at Yahoo from moving on.

Yup, if you're in the H1B queue for a green card, you have to restart the whole process if you switch employers. Been there, done that, not cool.

Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#19

Post by carguy1983 »

chollida1 wrote: post #16
samstave wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>...there are not too many companies which deal with the kind of scale and tech Yahoo does and a lot of people like that" Google, Facebook, Apple - all here in the bay area, all massive scale. Are yahooligans not flocking to these giants?

Well moving jobs, even for the most talented employees can be difficult for a number of reasons. 1) inertia, there is alot to be said for working at the same place for 10 years, you know the people, systems, and processes. By this time you might be 35 and married with a few kids. Often you don't know if you have the energy to go do it all over again. 2) fear of failure. If you've been somewhere and grown into a role…

Grandparent post only mentioned 3 companies out of literally thousands in the valley, 1 of which only has a couple thousand employees and is privately held. "Not too many" companies operate at Yahoo scale is a true statement still.

I would also add to the parent post that many Yahoo employees are financially successful, having been through earlier stages. They aren't fresh grads looking for salary bumps or the target demographic to cash in on an IPO (since they already went through one, or have greatly profited from options since being hired at Yahoo).

That being said, most of the 'good' people I know of (key word being know of) have left Yahoo for the other big internet companies or startups. They also seem to have hired a lot of 'media' type people in the recent past, not necessarily tech people.

Re: 'Deep' layoffs expected at Yahoo

#20

Post by wavephorm »

How in the world do they have 14,000 employees? I just checked the Yahoo.com site right now, yup still looks the same as it did in 1998 except now it's nicely formatted for an 800px wide monitor. What are all these people doing all day long?
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