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Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

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Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#81

Layoffs are always counter-productive as going forward employees take fewer risks, to evade being the one laid off. Layoffs kill innovation.

I am not advocating for this but you could turn that argument easily around: Not laying off people makes them feel very secure which does not incentivice them to take risks and innovate either. At least when they are no inherently driven to push their careers forward.

Edit: To expand on my comment: At my company the problem with missing innovation is not related to layoffs (which do not happen, thankfully). But rather that hiring is very slow as management thinks teams need to "earn" those additional resources by innovating instead of the other way around: hiring people that are willing to innovate.

Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#82
post #35

My firm made billions last year too and just laid off hundreds of engineers (a decent %) Some of the best engineers, those that I respected the most, went. People who make no sense. After last year's layoffs they told us they were "done" and it was "all behind us". Last year then turned out to a better year financially than 2022 (we have access to the top line numbers) You can't trust anything anyone above you in the…

I find it shocking that this is news to anybody, or that this has ever (in the last n generations) not been the case.

Your advice is sound: exchange your expertise for money, invest the money, leave.

Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#83
post #35

My firm made billions last year too and just laid off hundreds of engineers (a decent %) Some of the best engineers, those that I respected the most, went. People who make no sense. After last year's layoffs they told us they were "done" and it was "all behind us". Last year then turned out to a better year financially than 2022 (we have access to the top line numbers) You can't trust anything anyone above you in the…

Better put, the relationship you have with your employer is a business relation ship. It's not personal. They are not your friends, nor your enemies. It's simply a convenient arrangement between the two of you for as long as that lasts. And it might become convenient for either side to change that arrangement at any point.

The more you earn, the higher the risk that at some point somebody decides that they want to spend less / smarter. So, your risk increases with your salary. That's fine because it enables you to mitigate such a scenario by having savings.

I've been part of a big layoff round once. It wasn't personal. That was just my employer rounding up a large group of people to cut some meaningful chunk out of their salary expenses. It wasn't the last round either. The company, Nokia, ultimately got out of the phone and map business (I was in the maps unit). The final head count reduction was in the tens of thousands. A lot of those have since had successful careers and the Nokia implosion spawned quite a few successful companies.

But getting layed off is a bit of a rough ride. You feel bitter, angry, insulted, etc. But on reflection I actually got a fair deal and honestly I needed the wake up call that job security is a big illusion. I was just coasting in my career and a bit too comfortable. The moment was perfect as I was still in my thirties. This stuff gets harder as you get older, less flexible, and more dependent on job security. I've been doing startups and freelance work ever since. Which means I'm my own boss now and I've learned a lot in the decade since that happened.

Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#84
post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is kind of silly. You probably chose to work at a company that “made billions”. You probably sought some perks related to doing so, be it remuneration, prestige, whatever. This is in part a game you choose to play, and the company that’s making billions is acting like a company that makes billions. You may in the future choose to make a different trade-off and work elsewhere? And I don’t mean some grow-or-die VC…

I've worked across the spectrum from 8 people companies to 20,000 employee multi-nationals. From companies 30 years old to startups. It doesn't make a difference. You likely won't see redundancy coming. Chances are you'll be dismissed out of the blue one random day.

[deleted]

Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#85
post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is this comparable to Intel? Is Google struggling financially ?

Their profit has been declining rapidly the last two years, so they’re cutting costs to turn things around. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38949755

Funny. Here I was abandoning their products because they don't SUPPORT them. I dare say Google could have easily used their laid off staff to better maintain their existing products and through that restore confidence in their products and be able to achieve higher sales and profit margins.

Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#86
post #46

AI has increased productivity which might be a reason for it

AI has increased the perception of productivity to unwitting managers, which is a dangerous pit to be falling into. It's like a lot of those fabled 10x engineers that I've run into over the years; they may seem like they're incredibly productive and managers love them, but in reality their work is so riddled with issues and rushed half-baked ideas, that they end up costing the other engineers on the team 10x the amou…

Widespread use of tools like Copilot hasn’t been happening for long enough for you to draw these generalisations with an appropriate degree of confidence. This just comes across as you misrepresenting your personally-aligned hypothetical as reality.

Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#87
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And you know what happens with the money that you take, save and invest? They go in to public companies, they hire MBA's, and they try to improve profitability of company by letting engineers go. Your money have come a full cycle :)

TINA when CPI inflation (in the UK) is has been 18% in just 2 years.

And food prices feel like they're up 50% over the same period, especially when you start noticing the shrinkflation.

£6 for a pint of beer (outside of London) is 'the new normal'.

Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#88
post #24

That's bad news for the IT jobs market. The big tech companies are firing people - those people will have no problem finding another job, but that's a job taken away from more average folks. Combined with high interest rates, that prevent businesses from starting new projects financed through credit. Also ChatGPT and other AIs increasing developers, artists, etc. productivity - so fewer people can do as much work. Pr…

IT salaries are high mostly because the people who can do the job well can also do other jobs well, so if salaries go down then people change careers. For example, most people who can do IT could also become an electrician, for which the demand is currently high. > Also ChatGPT and other AIs increasing developers, artists, etc. productivity - so fewer people can do as much work. This is the sort of thing that increas…

Becoming an electrician is hard the UK, because you need to get that initial work experience, which experienced electricians are reluctant to do.

Re: Google Cuts Jobs in Engineering and Other Divisions

#89

> laid off employees who worked on ... the Pixel phone. That sounds weird to me. Pixel phones has grown very fast in the last years and I don't se how it can be seen as anything but a great success.

Pixel is not officially sold and supported in a substantial number of countries. It results in many issues, such as 5G not working when traveling from country to country. Or in case of Chromecast dongle, 5GHz Wi-Fi not working. Which makes my head explode, considering that they employ only "top talent" and has considerable resources to properly catalogue and implement all radio frequencies of the world. Google cannot…

Google is good at making algorithms and tech but product development and long term vision have never been its strong points.
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