3 ms·

That's ok. You are just built to work with more structure and processes. Some people like the small company vibe where things are a bit chaotic but also fun and

That's ok. You are just built to work with more structure and processes. Some people like the small company vibe where things are a bit chaotic but also fun and creative. Nothing wrong with either.

igor47 3y ago
Sadly, this is a false dichotomy. I've been involved with plenty of small companies where things are somehow both chaotic and also very structure/process-oriented, bureaucratic, and absolutely not fun or creative. My experience at Airbnb 2012 - 2016 is also that a company that's quite large can also be chaotic, fun, and creative. Alas, to filter companies, size is not enough. If you want positive attributes, you have to explicitly look for them.
jorblumesea 3y ago
That's not what that comment was saying. It was an idealistic take on a small shop, not a realistic take. eg: "work at a reasonable pace", "compensated fairly" often does not happen. What it often means is stressful deadlines and low pay for hours work.
volkk 3y ago
and also 10 hours a week of meetings about said rigid process
Aurornis 3y ago
> You are just built to work with more structure and processes. For what it's worth, some of the most highly structured and process-heavy tech companies I've worked at have been small startups. Small companies can be a haven for micromanaging first-time CTOs, inexperienced VPs of Engineering who learned how to "lead" from books and LinkedIn posts, Technical Program Managers who want to control every aspect of everything in the company, and Project Managers who don't have anyone to guide them so they fall back to nagging everyone about progress all day. I don't think it's accurate to generalize all small companies as being low-structure or light on process.
- behringer 3y ago
  Structure and process is not micro management. It's just management.
  - Aurornis 3y ago
    Micromanagers love structure and process. They'll give you more structure and process and management than anyone asked for. There's nothing special about structure and process that makes it immune to micromanagement.

That's ok. You are just built to work with more structure and processes. Some people like the small company vibe where things are a bit chaotic but also fun and creative. Nothing wrong with either.

igor47 3y ago

Sadly, this is a false dichotomy. I've been involved with plenty of small companies where things are somehow both chaotic and also very structure/process-oriented, bureaucratic, and absolutely not fun or creative. My experience at Airbnb 2012 - 2016 is also that a company that's quite large can also be chaotic, fun, and creative. Alas, to filter companies, size is not enough. If you want positive attributes, you have to explicitly look for them.

jorblumesea 3y ago

That's not what that comment was saying. It was an idealistic take on a small shop, not a realistic take. eg: "work at a reasonable pace", "compensated fairly" often does not happen. What it often means is stressful deadlines and low pay for hours work.

volkk 3y ago

and also 10 hours a week of meetings about said rigid process

Aurornis 3y ago

> You are just built to work with more structure and processes. For what it's worth, some of the most highly structured and process-heavy tech companies I've worked at have been small startups. Small companies can be a haven for micromanaging first-time CTOs, inexperienced VPs of Engineering who learned how to "lead" from books and LinkedIn posts, Technical Program Managers who want to control every aspect of everything in the company, and Project Managers who don't have anyone to guide them so they fall back to nagging everyone about progress all day. I don't think it's accurate to generalize all small companies as being low-structure or light on process.

behringer 3y ago
Structure and process is not micro management. It's just management.
- Aurornis 3y ago
  Micromanagers love structure and process. They'll give you more structure and process and management than anyone asked for. There's nothing special about structure and process that makes it immune to micromanagement.