11–20 of 107 posts
This may seem like a joke, but the answer says a lot about an organization. For example, last time I was at the Wikimedia Foundation offices, this sign was above the sink:
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:These_dishes_may_requ...
1. How do you handle the logical conclusion of letting your workers do whatever they want, they don't do anything? This may not apply to all employees, but it surely applies to at least one, and I wanted to know specifically how you might handle that situation. 2. What sort of system do you have to address problems with the unconditional hierarchy? For example, if an employee disagrees with Gabe, who wins and how is…
> they don't do anything I don't know about you, but not doing anything is boring to me. Working is so often much more fun than doing nothing.
Next up: "Poll: How many people consider switching to Valve organization?"
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> they don't do anything I don't know about you, but not doing anything is boring to me. Working is so often much more fun than doing nothing.
100% this. To herd cats, you open tuna cans. Real management isn't telling people what to do. It's helping people find the intersection between what they want to do and what customers need, and then supporting them. That strikes me as especially easy at Valve, where the whole point is to create something that other people enjoy. If you can't find fun somewhere in the vast space of "create something fun," you're dead…
I don't think most people are quite as bad about this as financial traders, but I imagine no group's numbers add up to 100% exactly. What's the dynamic like at Valve, and how do you make sure people feel fairly treated?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
100% this. To herd cats, you open tuna cans. Real management isn't telling people what to do. It's helping people find the intersection between what they want to do and what customers need, and then supporting them. That strikes me as especially easy at Valve, where the whole point is to create something that other people enjoy. If you can't find fun somewhere in the vast space of "create something fun," you're dead…
I understand the parent comments point as well as yours. I realize this won't be an issue for most of the employees, but bad apples sneak through everywhere, it's human nature, and I specifically wanted to understand how they might handle that.
How many Valve employees does it take to change a light bulb? Who orders the light bulbs and who decides when and where it is to be installed?
we have a number of 'bad apples', but they generally find themselves ostracized very quickly. as we have no downside income guarantees (we are organized as a group of independent contractors), people very quickly fall out of the organisation
i assume valve accomplish similar by minimizing payments to individuals who act in bad faith. as they are probably primarily financially motivated and valve is likely a great entry on a cv, i'm sure they don't stick around long
Do the dishes in the office sink get washed? If so, by whom? And how clean is the kitchen area? This may seem like a joke, but the answer says a lot about an organization. For example, last time I was at the Wikimedia Foundation offices, this sign was above the sink: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:These_dishes_may_requ...
How many Valve employees does it take to change a light bulb? Who orders the light bulbs and who decides when and where it is to be installed?
I don't think this question should be downvoted. There's a lot of unsexy infrastructure stuff that just needs doing. If people can really do whatever they want, what happens to the stuff that nobody wants to do? Lightbulbs are a great example.
