4 ms·

1. Interesting tech problems 2. Smart coworkers (well before this came out) 3. Good compensation (I heard for top tier applicants, they give something like MS

1. Interesting tech problems 2. Smart coworkers (well before this came out) 3. Good compensation (I heard for top tier applicants, they give something like MSFT total comp as salary with a ridiculous amount of paper money) 4. Assumed less bureaucracy compared to Big Cos because of unicorn/start up status 5. Ability to develop the first X in the new ride sharing/autonomous car industry Uber would be a good fit for someone who specifically wants to work at a big_unicorn with large scale technology problems. Most engineers wouldn't be able to accurately evaluate the ability of the leadership of tech companies, so that negative is out the door. For the ethics portion, that's subjective. For the cut-throat nature of the company, I heard that it was worse than most tech companies but not terrible (60+ hr/wks) like some financial companies.

oculusthrift 10y ago
I know 3 is wrong since I got offers from both companies. At least for new grads. Uber's Salary offer was actually pretty terrible compared to the other companies and they wouldn't budge on anything except stock options which are monopoly money. And when I say terrible, i mean the stocks were worth half and the salary was 12k less.
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]
- philjr 10y ago
  Comparing compensation for experienced engineers and new grads between companies isn't apples to apples.
  - konceptz 10y ago
    I believe the parent of your post is referring to offers from both companies when he was a new grad. Inclusive of both offers.
- Bartweiss 10y ago
  Anecdotally, they have made some crazy high offers, even to new grads (I didn't interview, but I have it at one reliable remove). Given the other stories about how they operate, I wouldn't be especially shocked if their starting offers varied wildly over time, even on no particular basis.
Hydraulix989 10y ago
I've worked 60+ hr/wks ever since I was a junior engineer, wasn't aware it was considered "terrible." Most people here in SV are putting in at least 50, even in the employers that people would consider to be more laid back around here.
- maruhan2 10y ago
  50 vs 60 is huge though. That's 2hrs extra work per day. 10hrs/day vs 12hrs/day
  - rusk 10y ago
    I did this a bit, as a younger man. It was fun, and an easy way to stand out from the crowd. Was nice to get the pat on the back from the boss in the morning "did you go home at all last night?". From a personal development point of view it was a valuable experience because it allowed me to get ahead of the curve and delve into some of the more intricate details of the work. It's no way to live though, in particular on an ongoing basis. The cost is just too high. I still wouldn't be averse to the odd bit of overwork when it comes to the crunch but these days that's very much as a favour to my employer - and one I know is appreciated.
    - gutnor 10y ago
      There is a huge difference. If expectation is 60 hours, you would need to push 80 hours to stand out the way you did. 60 hours would not get you a pat on the back. People in finance do it. The difference is that if you push 80 hours for 5 years and you are not culled, the pay becomes massive with senior developer level base salary with contractual guarantee of 150% salary as bonus. You can retire in your early 30's or continue working 80 hours. Except that now 80 hours becomes "management 80 hours" - i.e. just having your phone with you counts as working.
      - rusk 10y ago
        Well I guess it's all about context isn't it? If you're working in a place where everybody is working 60 hours and competing to be the richest man in the graveyard then yeah it's not much. But when you're working an extra 2 hours a day on your own then yeah - then that's something. It's all relative.

oculusthrift 10y ago

I know 3 is wrong since I got offers from both companies. At least for new grads. Uber's Salary offer was actually pretty terrible compared to the other companies and they wouldn't budge on anything except stock options which are monopoly money. And when I say terrible, i mean the stocks were worth half and the salary was 12k less.

deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
philjr 10y ago
Comparing compensation for experienced engineers and new grads between companies isn't apples to apples.
- konceptz 10y ago
  I believe the parent of your post is referring to offers from both companies when he was a new grad. Inclusive of both offers.
Bartweiss 10y ago
Anecdotally, they have made some crazy high offers, even to new grads (I didn't interview, but I have it at one reliable remove). Given the other stories about how they operate, I wouldn't be especially shocked if their starting offers varied wildly over time, even on no particular basis.

Hydraulix989 10y ago

I've worked 60+ hr/wks ever since I was a junior engineer, wasn't aware it was considered "terrible." Most people here in SV are putting in at least 50, even in the employers that people would consider to be more laid back around here.

maruhan2 10y ago
50 vs 60 is huge though. That's 2hrs extra work per day. 10hrs/day vs 12hrs/day
- rusk 10y ago
  I did this a bit, as a younger man. It was fun, and an easy way to stand out from the crowd. Was nice to get the pat on the back from the boss in the morning "did you go home at all last night?". From a personal development point of view it was a valuable experience because it allowed me to get ahead of the curve and delve into some of the more intricate details of the work. It's no way to live though, in particular on an ongoing basis. The cost is just too high. I still wouldn't be averse to the odd bit of overwork when it comes to the crunch but these days that's very much as a favour to my employer - and one I know is appreciated.
  - gutnor 10y ago
    There is a huge difference. If expectation is 60 hours, you would need to push 80 hours to stand out the way you did. 60 hours would not get you a pat on the back. People in finance do it. The difference is that if you push 80 hours for 5 years and you are not culled, the pay becomes massive with senior developer level base salary with contractual guarantee of 150% salary as bonus. You can retire in your early 30's or continue working 80 hours. Except that now 80 hours becomes "management 80 hours" - i.e. just having your phone with you counts as working.
    - rusk 10y ago
      Well I guess it's all about context isn't it? If you're working in a place where everybody is working 60 hours and competing to be the richest man in the graveyard then yeah it's not much. But when you're working an extra 2 hours a day on your own then yeah - then that's something. It's all relative.