@Chris: I hired someone for a lead Plone developer position a couple of months ago. And, we had recently advertised a QA Lead opening. That’s probably the position you’re thinking of…it was removed (deleted) last week, as part of cost cutting.
I get the feeling that the larger a company gets, the less they really know what they’re doing. It takes so long for signal to meander its way from the head to the hands that all of the actions are jerky and disjointed. I started to say “like a toddler”, but really, it’s more like the Ghostbuster’s Stay Puft, I think.
I’ll take my companies small when I have the choice, thanks.
I’d like to suggest that in a healthy larger company, the company’s size could be beneficial. If vacillating decisions were dampened by the longer communication paths, the end result might be less, not more, jerking movement. Extending your analogy, I’d suggest it depends upon the integrity and quality of the nerve paths along the way.
Good intermediary managers will dampen a bad decision’s amplitude by pushing back, suggesting alternatives, etc. So that by the time the decision reaches you, its sharp edges have been rounded off. (Yeah, I just mixed metaphors…) Bad managers just pass along bad decisions, or even increase their frequency or amplitude.
John, sorry to hear that. I hope it doesn’t take you as long as it took me to find the next job (2 months).
Hint: file for unemployment immediately, even if you received a severance check, or if you don’t think you’ll need the money. The unemployment offices are very busy these days, and it could take a while.
@John: Thanks. I’m going to take off the next week, just hang out and chill. Clean my home office, spend some time with friends I haven’t seen in a while, etc. Around the middle of the month, I’ll start looking for a job.
Filing for unemployment, ah, such a pleasant experience… At least you can do all the paperwork on-line now, in Washington State.
I’ve been looking for a job since December without any luck. But then this past week, suddenly I got 3 calls. Maybe now that the holidays are well past, companies are starting to hire again.
You remember what we talked about at lunch a couple weeks ago, right? Well, we were just hit, too. They let go the office manager and a couple of PMs, plus they disconnected all of our desk phones, too. Something tells me that it’s not going to stop there either.
@Dang: They disconnected your desk phones? Yikes. That’s a new one. How much do they save by switching off the PBX?
Everyone at a start-up deserves to know the total amount of money in the bank, the mean burn rate over the past six months, and the projection of when the cash will run out. I hope you have all that info. If not, yell until they tell you!
It happened to me in November (just as the holidays start,
when no one is hiring for real)…I’ve been doing a little specialized
consulting, but now the real search has begun. You’ve got a good
network, use it.
Seek Nuance 
Sorry to hear that John. That’s going around (after 5 years my last day is Apr 3rd). At least I got some warning, unlike most folks.
@Beau: Thanks. Sorry to hear it’s happening to you, too. In my case, no warning… C’est la vie.
Wow, weren’t you just hiring for a python developer there?
@Chris: I hired someone for a lead Plone developer position a couple of months ago. And, we had recently advertised a QA Lead opening. That’s probably the position you’re thinking of…it was removed (deleted) last week, as part of cost cutting.
Sorry to hear that.
I get the feeling that the larger a company gets, the less they really know what they’re doing. It takes so long for signal to meander its way from the head to the hands that all of the actions are jerky and disjointed. I started to say “like a toddler”, but really, it’s more like the Ghostbuster’s Stay Puft, I think.
I’ll take my companies small when I have the choice, thanks.
@Jeremy Dunck: Great analogy.
I’d like to suggest that in a healthy larger company, the company’s size could be beneficial. If vacillating decisions were dampened by the longer communication paths, the end result might be less, not more, jerking movement. Extending your analogy, I’d suggest it depends upon the integrity and quality of the nerve paths along the way.
Good intermediary managers will dampen a bad decision’s amplitude by pushing back, suggesting alternatives, etc. So that by the time the decision reaches you, its sharp edges have been rounded off. (Yeah, I just mixed metaphors…) Bad managers just pass along bad decisions, or even increase their frequency or amplitude.
My sympathies. Let’s get together for lunch and see how we can move things forward. Thinking cap on here.
John, sorry to hear that. I hope it doesn’t take you as long as it took me to find the next job (2 months).
Hint: file for unemployment immediately, even if you received a severance check, or if you don’t think you’ll need the money. The unemployment offices are very busy these days, and it could take a while.
@John: Thanks. I’m going to take off the next week, just hang out and chill. Clean my home office, spend some time with friends I haven’t seen in a while, etc. Around the middle of the month, I’ll start looking for a job.
Filing for unemployment, ah, such a pleasant experience… At least you can do all the paperwork on-line now, in Washington State.
Dude… bummer. Sorry to hear that. I’m sure you’ll find something, though. Best of luck!
Grrrrrrrrr …… that sucks. Sorry to hear about it.
Let me know when you’re jumping back in. We might have something up your alley.
@Austin: Thanks. It happens. I’m chilling for a week or so… I’ll ping you when I start my job search.
Oh, wow, so sorry to hear this.
I’ve been looking for a job since December without any luck. But then this past week, suddenly I got 3 calls. Maybe now that the holidays are well past, companies are starting to hire again.
AGHGHH!!! What a bummer, John!
You remember what we talked about at lunch a couple weeks ago, right? Well, we were just hit, too. They let go the office manager and a couple of PMs, plus they disconnected all of our desk phones, too. Something tells me that it’s not going to stop there either.
@Dang: They disconnected your desk phones? Yikes. That’s a new one. How much do they save by switching off the PBX?
Everyone at a start-up deserves to know the total amount of money in the bank, the mean burn rate over the past six months, and the projection of when the cash will run out. I hope you have all that info. If not, yell until they tell you!
It happened to me in November (just as the holidays start,
when no one is hiring for real)…I’ve been doing a little specialized
consulting, but now the real search has begun. You’ve got a good
network, use it.
Love,
Wook
@Wook: Ick, sorry to hear that, Dave. That must have put a damper on the holidays.
Your commenting avatar looks rather satanic. Very cool.
Yikes! I’m sorry to hear this; so far the place I’m working is doing okay but ya never good. Best of luck.
@DDA: Thanks!
Sorry to hear it john. Whats your future plans ?
I’ve been laying the groundwork for the new job search. I think I’ll be able to start officially spreading the word around this coming week.
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