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Can you define what you mean by "create"? Are you saying programmers are creators because they can code? That sounds like a one-dimensional view of what product

by dsacco 10y ago

Can you define what you mean by "create"? Are you saying programmers are creators because they can code? That sounds like a one-dimensional view of what product or value creation is. Furthermore, you're charitably generalizing developers as people who leave because of their dreams and uncharitably generalizing executives as people who just get bored and want to turn the wheels of production at a whim. I think the point that the other commenter and I are trying to make is what while you can defensibly claim you're not saying executives "aren't critical players", you're being dismissive of their overall contributions by painting them in a diminutive and uncharitable way. You're essentially saying, "I'm not saying executives aren't critical players, they're just not the real creators of value...they leave because they get bored and have so much capital while developers leave because of a twinkle in their eye."

npunt 10y ago
Agree. When I see people make statements like "but they are not X" its almost always a value statement with a word substitution, and you can just swap in 'good' for 'creator' (or whatever other word used). GP's opinion that management aren't 'creators' of course neglects a few things: a) the role of management is necessarily one step removed from direct project output, so yes, they'll probably do less direct work on the project b) that 'creators' can (and do) move in to management c) there is no creativity involved in taking uncertain inputs and turning those into the direction & vision of a project d) that shaping a project's output to maximize outcomes is something that can net a lot more value than adding another 'creator' e) that 'creators' sometimes don't care about the project outcomes as much as the process f) that 'creators' may not have experience in the various domains their product or service is ultimately being provided in, and thus may not understand or pick the right constraints to apply during their creative process. ...among many other possible misconceptions. I've seen this in the education world myself, where teachers (who are similarly front-line workers) were skeptical of management and the viewpoints of those outside their domain being able to add value. 'But they're not educators' was the statement I heard a lot.

by dsacco 10y ago

npunt 10y ago

Agree. When I see people make statements like "but they are not X" its almost always a value statement with a word substitution, and you can just swap in 'good' for 'creator' (or whatever other word used). GP's opinion that management aren't 'creators' of course neglects a few things: a) the role of management is necessarily one step removed from direct project output, so yes, they'll probably do less direct work on the project b) that 'creators' can (and do) move in to management c) there is no creativity involved in taking uncertain inputs and turning those into the direction & vision of a project d) that shaping a project's output to maximize outcomes is something that can net a lot more value than adding another 'creator' e) that 'creators' sometimes don't care about the project outcomes as much as the process f) that 'creators' may not have experience in the various domains their product or service is ultimately being provided in, and thus may not understand or pick the right constraints to apply during their creative process. ...among many other possible misconceptions. I've seen this in the education world myself, where teachers (who are similarly front-line workers) were skeptical of management and the viewpoints of those outside their domain being able to add value. 'But they're not educators' was the statement I heard a lot.