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It appears that the higher you go up the corporate ladder, the more it is about connections rather than actual knowledge, to the point that knowledge carries al

It appears that the higher you go up the corporate ladder, the more it is about connections rather than actual knowledge, to the point that knowledge carries almost zero weight and connections are everything. A lot of companies are like this, and most of them (including Equifax) are still going strong. Meritocracy at the bottom and nepotism at the top seems to be the deal. Anyway, the last line of the article sums it up well: "Everything about this fiasco just gets more and more surreal."

pbhjpbhj 7y ago
Look at UK politicians as an example, they usually have no specialist training for their brief (the government department they direct) and often jump from one section to another. There's a sense in which they have control of entire industry sectors, some higher learning or extended experience should really be required.
- iliketosleep 7y ago
  I think it's because their job is to make purely political decisions, leading to decisions that on the surface actually look insane.
asdfman123 7y ago
This is the way the corporate world has always worked. The problem is when this world collides with software, where actually knowing what the hell you're doing matters.
- iliketosleep 7y ago
  > This is the way the corporate world has always worked. To an extent, yes, but much more so now than in the past few decades. In the past, those who were senior exectives responsible for technical aspects of the company would usually be very strong technically, having worked their way up from more junior positions and gaining management training along the way.
- cameronbrown 7y ago
  Knowing what you're doing always mattered, but you don't need to be a qualified engineer to deploy software, unlike say, a building. I maintain that we need the title of 'software engineer' to really mean something, and for someone in a position like Chief Security Officer to be qualified as such. If a bridge collapsed due to the person responsible being a music teacher then you can bet there'd be jail time.

pbhjpbhj 7y ago

Look at UK politicians as an example, they usually have no specialist training for their brief (the government department they direct) and often jump from one section to another. There's a sense in which they have control of entire industry sectors, some higher learning or extended experience should really be required.

iliketosleep 7y ago
I think it's because their job is to make purely political decisions, leading to decisions that on the surface actually look insane.

asdfman123 7y ago

This is the way the corporate world has always worked. The problem is when this world collides with software, where actually knowing what the hell you're doing matters.

iliketosleep 7y ago
> This is the way the corporate world has always worked. To an extent, yes, but much more so now than in the past few decades. In the past, those who were senior exectives responsible for technical aspects of the company would usually be very strong technically, having worked their way up from more junior positions and gaining management training along the way.
cameronbrown 7y ago
Knowing what you're doing always mattered, but you don't need to be a qualified engineer to deploy software, unlike say, a building. I maintain that we need the title of 'software engineer' to really mean something, and for someone in a position like Chief Security Officer to be qualified as such. If a bridge collapsed due to the person responsible being a music teacher then you can bet there'd be jail time.