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I feel like there’s something weird going on in most companies above a certain size. I’ve worked at small companies with a wonderful culture and people put in l

I feel like there’s something weird going on in most companies above a certain size. I’ve worked at small companies with a wonderful culture and people put in lots of work to get a beautiful product shipped. But then when the company grows something changes and pushes those original passionate people out. Everyone else sees the passionate people get treated bad and react appropriately. Suddenly the large company carved its own soul out, and then wonders why its workers come empty. I would do all I could for a job that respected me as a human being. But it’s gotten to the point where you can’t trust anyone above you, no matter what they say. Doing well in a growing company means you have to get more and more cutthroat, so you’re incentivized to try less and less.

outworlder 4y ago
Middle management happens. When the company is smaller you get managers that are genuinely interested in growing the company – because that's what they grow too. Forget the 'mission' and such nonsense, noone truly cares about that. And the people that are highly visible early on tend to keep on growing their influence, organically. However, at a certain size, they don't grow all that much if at all. Sure, the company might still be growing on sales numbers, but it's still mostly static. Some new divisions may pop up but they are usually satellite operations that may or may not matter in the long run. The next best alternative is to fight to move up the reporting chain. That means company growth or wellbeing no longer matters; in fact, cannibalizing existing products or whole divisions or bringing them under you is how managers grow. They do not care who or what they have to step on to make that happen.
sys_64738 4y ago
I go to work for 40 hours then leave the problems there. Work isn't life.
ravagat 4y ago
It's definitely noticeable beyond a certain number. I like to say it's partly a human nature thing. There's some theory/law/term for this where the minority (whether negative or positive) ends up operating as majority and influencing business decisions.

outworlder 4y ago

Middle management happens. When the company is smaller you get managers that are genuinely interested in growing the company – because that's what they grow too. Forget the 'mission' and such nonsense, noone truly cares about that. And the people that are highly visible early on tend to keep on growing their influence, organically. However, at a certain size, they don't grow all that much if at all. Sure, the company might still be growing on sales numbers, but it's still mostly static. Some new divisions may pop up but they are usually satellite operations that may or may not matter in the long run. The next best alternative is to fight to move up the reporting chain. That means company growth or wellbeing no longer matters; in fact, cannibalizing existing products or whole divisions or bringing them under you is how managers grow. They do not care who or what they have to step on to make that happen.

sys_64738 4y ago

I go to work for 40 hours then leave the problems there. Work isn't life.

ravagat 4y ago

It's definitely noticeable beyond a certain number. I like to say it's partly a human nature thing. There's some theory/law/term for this where the minority (whether negative or positive) ends up operating as majority and influencing business decisions.