Microsoft does away with stack ranking
1–10 of 159 posts
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#2Interesting timing given the article and discussion yesterday [1] about other companies using stack ranking. I wonder (and to some extent hope) that the others follow suit.
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#3Interesting timing given the article and discussion yesterday [1] about other companies using stack ranking. I wonder (and to some extent hope) that the others follow suit. [1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6712717
Especially interesting considering the author of that article works at Microsoft
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#4Looks like the process will be more peer driven. There'll probably still be ranking to find the top performers rather than weed out the bottom 10, which is good.
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#5This was seemingly inevitable whether this is actually useful or not. Microsoft has been getting increasing heat about our stack ranking system, both from employees and from external people.
But I don't think stack ranking is our problem. I think our problem is that we value this notion of the brilliant and excellent individual contributor instead of valuing employees that value teamwork and team problem solving. I suspect this is an institutional problem, having been started by exactly that sort of person.
It's this that causes the backstabbing and the mess that people attribute to "stack ranking". Until we put value in changing this culture, I don't see too much changing.
(Disclaimer: my team at Microsoft is sort of odd - we're not in Redmond, and I don't see a lot of this backstabbing that is oft-reported. I do see our managers overvaluing the brilliant IC and I do see my organization undervaluing teamwork, but at least we're not doing that stupid game playing like joining weak teams to get great reviews.)
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#6Bill Gates improved the world!
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#7We will continue to invest in a generous rewards budget, but there will no longer be a pre-determined targeted distribution. Managers and leaders will have flexibility to allocate rewards in the manner that best reflects the performance of their teams and individuals, as long as they stay within their compensation budget.
Is this not in effect the same as a curve? Giving higher bonuses to one person means giving lower bonuses to another. Giving everyone the same bonus discourages high performers from staying (and also working on the same team). People who receive little to no bonuses take the hint to leave, just as if they had received a 4 or a 5. Considering only 10% of employees receive a 4, and 5% receive a 5, I'm thinking that effectively, there has been no change.
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#8We will continue to invest in a generous rewards budget, but there will no longer be a pre-determined targeted distribution. Managers and leaders will have flexibility to allocate rewards in the manner that best reflects the performance of their teams and individuals, as long as they stay within their compensation budget. Is this not in effect the same as a curve? Giving higher bonuses to one person means giving lowe…
Yes, but there is no forced curve fit.
A healthy organization will always "manage out" people who are not fit for the job. At Microsoft, folks are given the hint early enough that they can explore other internal options before leaving the company entirely.
Though, to be honest, if someone just can't cut it, they will leave the company.
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#9We will continue to invest in a generous rewards budget, but there will no longer be a pre-determined targeted distribution. Managers and leaders will have flexibility to allocate rewards in the manner that best reflects the performance of their teams and individuals, as long as they stay within their compensation budget. Is this not in effect the same as a curve? Giving higher bonuses to one person means giving lowe…
At least now there is a 'base income' of sorts, and if you are unsatisfied with your job and/or the bonuses you get, you have ample time to find another job. You also have the opportunity to try to improve. This is a great improvement over 'pack up your shit and leave.'
Re: Microsoft does away with stack ranking
#10This sounds pretty good to me. If they actually implement what they wrote about here, I think Microsoft could become one of the better big companies to work at.
(I have a friend who works at BofA. They wanted him to take on a new project that he wasn't interested in. As a reward for agreeing, they went back to his old performance reviews and changed them from "Meets expectations" to "Exceeds expectations" and then promoted him for excellent performance. LOL.)