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All employee surveys are corporate theater. They create the illusion that employees and owners/management are equal parties in a discussion. They aren't. Corpor

All employee surveys are corporate theater. They create the illusion that employees and owners/management are equal parties in a discussion. They aren't. Corporations are oligarchical in nature. The philosopher Elizabeth Anderson calls them "private governments" with powers over our lives that would make most political theorists squeal.

raspberry1337 4y ago
[flagged]
cjrp 4y ago
I think the surveys play a role. They help the employer see whether the new policy will be easy or slightly tricky to implement. Either way it’s happening.
- nikau 4y ago
  Its providing the illusion of choice. Like on an airplane when they ask 'chicken or beef' - you ask for beef, "sorry we only have chicken left"
inglor_cz 4y ago
People in tech are among the most advantaged when it comes to salary/job conditions negotiation, and the possibility of saving up a reasonable reserve cash fund "just in case". For the opposite, see shop clerks, phone marketers etc. Few people want to do such jobs unless in dire straits; there was a famous article from the Resident Contrarian about it.
Hermitian909 4y ago
> All employee surveys are corporate theater. There's a theatrical aspect, but I assure you many companies take the surveys seriously; they just don't treat them like a "vote" in the way many people seem to expect. From management's perspective the surveys are trying to read the temperature of company and figure out: 1. Are there unexpected sources of pain? 2. Approximately how bad will the pain be for new policies? If some process intended (and thought) to be lightweight and cheap is called out as expensive and a major source of pain, management will probably take action. For something like ending remote work, the question is "Exactly how badly will enforcing this policy hurt us? Do we want to make that tradeoff" my guess is that if 99.9% of the company had sad Remote work was non-negotiable to them we wouldn't be reading this headline.
- shanusmagnus 4y ago
  Good call out. A thing I've noticed is that sometimes the surveys are a response to conditions being super toxic and terrible. Even when they're undertaken for good reasons (e.g., to learn how to fix it) by then so much trust has been lost that the responses are worthless. The best time to plant a "tree" is when things aren't fucked. Maybe the second best time isn't now.

raspberry1337 4y ago

[flagged]

cjrp 4y ago

I think the surveys play a role. They help the employer see whether the new policy will be easy or slightly tricky to implement. Either way it’s happening.

nikau 4y ago
Its providing the illusion of choice. Like on an airplane when they ask 'chicken or beef' - you ask for beef, "sorry we only have chicken left"

inglor_cz 4y ago

People in tech are among the most advantaged when it comes to salary/job conditions negotiation, and the possibility of saving up a reasonable reserve cash fund "just in case". For the opposite, see shop clerks, phone marketers etc. Few people want to do such jobs unless in dire straits; there was a famous article from the Resident Contrarian about it.

Hermitian909 4y ago

> All employee surveys are corporate theater. There's a theatrical aspect, but I assure you many companies take the surveys seriously; they just don't treat them like a "vote" in the way many people seem to expect. From management's perspective the surveys are trying to read the temperature of company and figure out: 1. Are there unexpected sources of pain? 2. Approximately how bad will the pain be for new policies? If some process intended (and thought) to be lightweight and cheap is called out as expensive and a major source of pain, management will probably take action. For something like ending remote work, the question is "Exactly how badly will enforcing this policy hurt us? Do we want to make that tradeoff" my guess is that if 99.9% of the company had sad Remote work was non-negotiable to them we wouldn't be reading this headline.

shanusmagnus 4y ago
Good call out. A thing I've noticed is that sometimes the surveys are a response to conditions being super toxic and terrible. Even when they're undertaken for good reasons (e.g., to learn how to fix it) by then so much trust has been lost that the responses are worthless. The best time to plant a "tree" is when things aren't fucked. Maybe the second best time isn't now.