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"the product teams that are left after pruning should try to keep the most experienced employees, lay off the junior ones" This inevitably leads to your produc

"the product teams that are left after pruning should try to keep the most experienced employees, lay off the junior ones" This inevitably leads to your product being owned by a few devs with no one else who has the org knowledge necessary to make meaningful changes. Your org should be making experienced devs. If it isn't, you don't own your product. Junior devs are your future. They have motivation and want to be apart of your mission far more than the experienced devs that are there for a paycheck so they can get their own show running.

wolverine876 3y ago
The full quote: "... the product teams that are left after pruning should try to keep the most experienced employees, lay off the junior ones, and return managers to individual contributor positions where possible. Experienced employees have been through this before, make better judgement calls under stress, and communicate better." So writes the experienced employee. Adding to the parent comment, experienced employees also may have vested interests and cognitive inertia based on the current situation, the way things have been done until now. If you want new growth, new perspective, new ideas, new energy, new blood can help. They don't know that 'back when Eddie was here, we did it this way ...' and they don't care. The OP also writes, managers start to hoard ... and play politics to preserve their products. That applies to the experienced employees too.
- AgentOrange1234 3y ago
  “They don't know that 'back when Eddie was here, we did it this way ...' and they don't care.” Per Chesterton’s Fence, that should scare the hell out of you. :)
  - wolverine876 3y ago
    Who is Chesterton? Someone that worked here last century? Seriously, it's a matter of degree and requires judgment. Mature businesses can accumulate many, many fences. Sometimes you need to charge through them - move fast and break things. Sometimes you need to pay more attention.

wolverine876 3y ago

The full quote: "... the product teams that are left after pruning should try to keep the most experienced employees, lay off the junior ones, and return managers to individual contributor positions where possible. Experienced employees have been through this before, make better judgement calls under stress, and communicate better." So writes the experienced employee. Adding to the parent comment, experienced employees also may have vested interests and cognitive inertia based on the current situation, the way things have been done until now. If you want new growth, new perspective, new ideas, new energy, new blood can help. They don't know that 'back when Eddie was here, we did it this way ...' and they don't care. The OP also writes, managers start to hoard ... and play politics to preserve their products. That applies to the experienced employees too.

AgentOrange1234 3y ago
“They don't know that 'back when Eddie was here, we did it this way ...' and they don't care.” Per Chesterton’s Fence, that should scare the hell out of you. :)
- wolverine876 3y ago
  Who is Chesterton? Someone that worked here last century? Seriously, it's a matter of degree and requires judgment. Mature businesses can accumulate many, many fences. Sometimes you need to charge through them - move fast and break things. Sometimes you need to pay more attention.