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“Force multiplication” is an intangible. If your salary depends on it, you’re depending on someone in management noticing that you’re “multiplying the force”, a
by irq11 7y ago
“Force multiplication” is an intangible. If your salary depends on it, you’re depending on someone in management noticing that you’re “multiplying the force”, and that you’re willing to leave. It happens, but it’s rare, and usually occurs when people are great negotiators, or such an OG with the founding team that they’re like part of the corporate logo.
For most people, salary correlates with measurable influence, and there’s nothing more measurable than head count. So maybe you’re right about certain orgs, but I wouldn’t advise any young turks to bet on it.
Basically, every nerd thinks they’re gonna be Jeff Dean...but there’s only one Jeff Dean, and his job is taken.
- lifeisstillgood 7y ago>>> For most people, salary correlates with measurable influence, and there’s nothing more measurable than head count. So maybe you’re right about certain orgs, but I wouldn’t advise any young turks to bet on it. Basically, every nerd thinks they’re gonna be Jeff Dean...but there’s only one Jeff Dean, and his job is taken. absolutely this
- lifeisstillgood 7y agoThe point to take away here was measurable influence. Just as in how sales people can be on commission but no one puts fifty developers on commission the ability to measure is as important as the metric itself
- thwarted 7y ago“Force multiplication” is an intangible. If your salary depends on it, you’re depending on someone in management noticing that you’re “multiplying the force”, and that you’re willing to leave. Most managers don't set their own salary, and are dependent on someone else noticing and respecting their "contribution" (like "headcount" metrics) for their compensation consideration. It is entirely possible to be sidelined as a manager, just as it is anywhere else. Everyone should have clear, communicated, consistent, meaningful, deliverable, pragmatic metrics that they are subject to in their evaluations.
- joshuamorton 7y agoJeff Dean is also a manager at this point. There were historically two though, Jeff and Sanjay, and Jeff's former role is free.
- irq11 7y agoThe “former role is free”? Google is huge and has thousands of managers, so it’s only “free” in the sense that they’re hiring some managers. There’s still only one Jeff Dean.
- joshuamorton 7y agoI think you misunderstood. Jeff was an IC. He no longer is. Under the naive assumptions that many people in this thread are making, that means the IC position he was in should be available. It's not. I leave why as an exercise to the reader.
- irq11 7y agoAh, indeed. I took your comment to mean the opposite. Mea culpa.