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I don't see how employee motivation, loss of talent, erosion of customer services are related to the need for unyielding year on year growth. There are compani

I don't see how employee motivation, loss of talent, erosion of customer services are related to the need for unyielding year on year growth. There are companies out there, private ones, where their customers are happy, their employees are happy (most of the time) and their retention is high.

Lamad123 5y ago
I hate how hn top threads usually degenerate into something totally unrelated to the original posts.
burntoutfire 5y ago
Without growth, the only way to get promoted is to get a spot of some higher-up who left the company (or retired/died). Whereas, in growing companies, there are new senior/management positions created all the time, to account for the growth - so, getting promoted is easier. Ambitious, hard working people like promotions, so they gravitate towards growing companies and not stale companies.
- crgwbr 5y ago
  Ambition and hard work are hardly the same thing. Many people work hard at their job, are paid a good wage, and are satisfied with their job, rather than constantly seeking a promotion. Constant promotion seeking isn’t admirable, it’s just greed.
- DubiousPusher 5y ago
  > Ambitious, hard working people like promotions Ambitious maybe (though that's nearly the definition of ambitious). Hardworking, not necessarily. I know a cement guy that you have never in your life worked a harder day than who has never received a promotion nor even sought one.
- da39a3ee 5y ago
  So is there anything to be done about it? How to avoid companies being compelled to seek growth always, to the detriment of their internal functioning/culture?
  - jleyank 5y ago
    As far as I can tell, don’t go public or be a regulated utility.
- royce 5y ago
  Am I the only one who thinks this sounds a lot like how pyramid schemes work?
mbesto 5y ago
> There are companies out there, private ones, where their customers are happy, their employees are happy (most of the time) and their retention is high. Companies that aren't growing? I meet A LOT of companies (about ~50 or so a year) and I can tell you there is massive difference between the distressed ones and the ones who are growing. btw - even 2~5% growth is fine, it doesn't need to be 25% google scale growth...but flat or declining is bad.
- ghaff 5y ago
  There are plenty of small private companies that more or less plod along year after year--small consultancies and the like. You're not going to have the level of compensation and opportunities you have at a large profitable growing public firm but you may be OK with that. Obviously declines are bad and, in any case, compensation will probably be a fraction of Google etc.

Lamad123 5y ago

I hate how hn top threads usually degenerate into something totally unrelated to the original posts.

burntoutfire 5y ago

Without growth, the only way to get promoted is to get a spot of some higher-up who left the company (or retired/died). Whereas, in growing companies, there are new senior/management positions created all the time, to account for the growth - so, getting promoted is easier. Ambitious, hard working people like promotions, so they gravitate towards growing companies and not stale companies.

crgwbr 5y ago
Ambition and hard work are hardly the same thing. Many people work hard at their job, are paid a good wage, and are satisfied with their job, rather than constantly seeking a promotion. Constant promotion seeking isn’t admirable, it’s just greed.
DubiousPusher 5y ago
> Ambitious, hard working people like promotions Ambitious maybe (though that's nearly the definition of ambitious). Hardworking, not necessarily. I know a cement guy that you have never in your life worked a harder day than who has never received a promotion nor even sought one.
da39a3ee 5y ago
So is there anything to be done about it? How to avoid companies being compelled to seek growth always, to the detriment of their internal functioning/culture?
- jleyank 5y ago
  As far as I can tell, don’t go public or be a regulated utility.
royce 5y ago
Am I the only one who thinks this sounds a lot like how pyramid schemes work?

mbesto 5y ago

> There are companies out there, private ones, where their customers are happy, their employees are happy (most of the time) and their retention is high. Companies that aren't growing? I meet A LOT of companies (about ~50 or so a year) and I can tell you there is massive difference between the distressed ones and the ones who are growing. btw - even 2~5% growth is fine, it doesn't need to be 25% google scale growth...but flat or declining is bad.

ghaff 5y ago
There are plenty of small private companies that more or less plod along year after year--small consultancies and the like. You're not going to have the level of compensation and opportunities you have at a large profitable growing public firm but you may be OK with that. Obviously declines are bad and, in any case, compensation will probably be a fraction of Google etc.