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You can fire 80% of software engineers, and the company will survive.
Summary
The article discusses the Pareto principle, which states that 80% of consequences come from 20% of causes, and argues that this principle applies to software engineers, in that 80% of results are delivered by 20% of engineers. The article goes on to say that while this may be true, it is not as simple as firing 80% of engineers, as this would also mean losing the company's core team. The article ends with a discussion of Twitter, which has recently undergone mass layoffs, and argues that while this may have cut into the company's core team, it is still possible for the company to survive and even thrive.
Q&As
What is the Pareto principle?
The Pareto principle is "80% of consequences come from 20% of causes".
What are the caveats to the Pareto principle?
The caveats to the Pareto principle are that it is applicable to big companies (vs. small and lean startups), it's not like 80% of engineers sit on their hands, and most of the time, they work on things without immediate impact (projects going nowhere, future-looking things, internal improvements to improve future maintenance, etc.).
How would firing 80% of engineers impact a company?
Firing 80% of engineers would impact a company by leaving it only with 20% of engineers (even the best ones), and the company would be way deep in survival mode (just barely providing support for an existing product, not building some new exciting things or even improving existing ones).
How can you identify a company's core team?
You can identify a company's core team by asking everybody to name five people who are doing well and who they want to work with again (in the next company), and then sorting employees by votes.
What is the importance of deep pockets for a company?
The importance of deep pockets for a company is that it can help navigate quite dire circumstances for companies.
AI Comments
👍 I agree with the author that companies can survive losing a large number of employees, as long as they keep the core team intact. This is an important point that is often overlooked.
👎 The author is wrong about firing 80% of employees. This will only lead to the company's downfall.
AI Discussion
Me: It's about how 80% of software engineers can be fired and the company will still survive.
Friend: That's interesting. I wonder if that's true for other industries as well.
Me: I'm not sure. I guess it depends on the industry. But it definitely makes you think about how important a few key employees can be.
Action items
- If you're a software engineer at a big company, be aware that you may be at risk of being fired, even if you're a high performer.
- If you're a manager at a big company, consider using the "five people" method to identify your core team.
- If you're a software engineer at a big company that's in survival mode, be prepared to work harder than ever to keep the company afloat.
Technical terms
- Pareto principle
- "80% of consequences come from 20% of causes"
- Caveats
- things that could potentially invalidate the Pareto principle
- Rub
- a big problem
- Core team
- the most important employees of a company