5 ms·

As a FAANG employee myself, I think your opinion of the average FAANG developer is perhaps a bit too generous.

pc86 5y ago
That's certainly possible :) Even as someone with over a decade of work experience it's somewhat aspirational to work for a FAANG and get that big paycheck and all those RSUs. But no WFH is a deal-breaker unless they start opening up offices in Milwaukee soon.
- BooneJS 5y ago
  Google and Amazon are both in Madison.
  - pc86 5y ago
    I actually did look them all up after posting this comment, and you're right. And Microsoft says they have offices in Waukesha and Wauwatosa but it looks like they both point to a sales-only office in downtown Milwaukee.
  - OldHand2018 5y ago
    I doubt a lot of people would commute between Milwaukee and Madison when the Amtrak Hiawatha is 1.5 hours from Milwaukee to Chicago, within walking distance to Google Chicago.
  - jhickok 5y ago
    I know the Google building but I was not aware Amazon was in Madison in any substantive manner. Is it an Amazon building or a company they acquired?
    - BooneJS 5y ago
      Shopbop. https://www.amazon.jobs/en/location/madison-wi https://www.amazon.jobs/en/location/madison-wi
  - randcraw 5y ago
    It's probably like Google's office in Ann Arbor -- 450 people in advertising, marketing, and sales.
    - BooneJS 5y ago
      No, we’re actually all hardware and software engineering in Madison.
sumtechguy 5y ago
What many miss is also these large companies are doing something very interesting in the labor market. They are starving the competition. They spend a bit extra on labor but they get a long term benefit of lower number of effective competitors. MS did this for years in the 90s. Apple/Atari/Sony/IBM did it in the 80s. Being in office ('free lunch', perks, etc) is part of that lock in. If people are at home then they are more likely to wander off and find another job as at that point the only real difference between jobs is the kind of thing you work on and money.
- phreeza 5y ago
  I agree with the first part, not so sure about the conclusion though. What makes you think that WFH increases attrition? The FAANGs could easily spend some additional dollars to make "their" WFH more attractive than the competitions, similar to what they did with offices.
  - bluGill 5y ago
    Depends a lot. WFH when most companies won't allow it is a perk that will keep people around. However once WFH is a common thing it is much easier to switch. If you WFH you can work anywhere in the country (in theory world, but there are tricky issues there that I don't know much about) which means you can switch from a job in the Bay to NYC with no problem, then jump to the one job in some tiny village in Montana - all without leaving your family. Family is the key above. I moved to a different state from my family and I often feel the loss. It is now a big deal to go visit. I can't "call in a few favors" when I need my house painted (I'm also not called upon to help). Once you don't live near friends/family moving is just about the relocation package. Once you have friends and family around it is personally hard to move as you throw all of that away. By WFH you can ignore all that and live where it works best for your life. Now yes FAANG can give me a bit extra money if they want. However I've reached the point where money isn't my only motivation. I want interesting/fulfilling work, which if I decide they don't offer they can't really change the offer to give me.
    - phreeza 5y ago
r00t4ccess 5y ago
As a fellow FAANG, I completely agree

pc86 5y ago

That's certainly possible :) Even as someone with over a decade of work experience it's somewhat aspirational to work for a FAANG and get that big paycheck and all those RSUs. But no WFH is a deal-breaker unless they start opening up offices in Milwaukee soon.

BooneJS 5y ago
Google and Amazon are both in Madison.
- pc86 5y ago
  I actually did look them all up after posting this comment, and you're right. And Microsoft says they have offices in Waukesha and Wauwatosa but it looks like they both point to a sales-only office in downtown Milwaukee.
- OldHand2018 5y ago
  I doubt a lot of people would commute between Milwaukee and Madison when the Amtrak Hiawatha is 1.5 hours from Milwaukee to Chicago, within walking distance to Google Chicago.
- jhickok 5y ago
  I know the Google building but I was not aware Amazon was in Madison in any substantive manner. Is it an Amazon building or a company they acquired?
  - BooneJS 5y ago
    Shopbop. https://www.amazon.jobs/en/location/madison-wi https://www.amazon.jobs/en/location/madison-wi
- randcraw 5y ago
  It's probably like Google's office in Ann Arbor -- 450 people in advertising, marketing, and sales.
  - BooneJS 5y ago
    No, we’re actually all hardware and software engineering in Madison.

sumtechguy 5y ago

What many miss is also these large companies are doing something very interesting in the labor market. They are starving the competition. They spend a bit extra on labor but they get a long term benefit of lower number of effective competitors. MS did this for years in the 90s. Apple/Atari/Sony/IBM did it in the 80s. Being in office ('free lunch', perks, etc) is part of that lock in. If people are at home then they are more likely to wander off and find another job as at that point the only real difference between jobs is the kind of thing you work on and money.

phreeza 5y ago
I agree with the first part, not so sure about the conclusion though. What makes you think that WFH increases attrition? The FAANGs could easily spend some additional dollars to make "their" WFH more attractive than the competitions, similar to what they did with offices.
- bluGill 5y ago
  Depends a lot. WFH when most companies won't allow it is a perk that will keep people around. However once WFH is a common thing it is much easier to switch. If you WFH you can work anywhere in the country (in theory world, but there are tricky issues there that I don't know much about) which means you can switch from a job in the Bay to NYC with no problem, then jump to the one job in some tiny village in Montana - all without leaving your family. Family is the key above. I moved to a different state from my family and I often feel the loss. It is now a big deal to go visit. I can't "call in a few favors" when I need my house painted (I'm also not called upon to help). Once you don't live near friends/family moving is just about the relocation package. Once you have friends and family around it is personally hard to move as you throw all of that away. By WFH you can ignore all that and live where it works best for your life. Now yes FAANG can give me a bit extra money if they want. However I've reached the point where money isn't my only motivation. I want interesting/fulfilling work, which if I decide they don't offer they can't really change the offer to give me.
  - phreeza 5y ago

r00t4ccess 5y ago

As a fellow FAANG, I completely agree