The core of this issue: Big[1] companies tend to collapse under their own bureaucracy. Executives either don't really care, don't hear about problems, or don'

The core of this issue: Big[1] companies tend to collapse under their own bureaucracy. Executives either don't really care, don't hear about problems, or don't trust anyone enough to delegate power to someone who would care (or they are incapable of hiring people who do care / are trustworthy) Middle managers don't get rewarded for risks that succeed, they are motivated mostly to CYA Committees are inherently unproductive, and become "scorekeeping grounds" for petty people who are in otherwise denied any power Jobs are staffed with people who won't rock the boat because the reward for rocking the boat doesn't offset the downside of getting fired Everybody down to the "productive" employees (somebody who might actually redesign the site) gets so whipped and dispirited that they tell themselves that this is how The Real World is. Turtles all the way down... apathy, self-deception, excuses, and groupthink. [1] I say big, but at one job, I saw this happening in a team of about 20. It really depends on the individual group's inclination towards buck-passing and bet-hedging