6 ms·

All a programmer has to do to show his or her real power is utter the words 'I quit.' Then all the obviously more intelligent and better looking managers and b

All a programmer has to do to show his or her real power is utter the words 'I quit.' Then all the obviously more intelligent and better looking managers and business people start to lose their shit.

jeremiep 10y ago
And then you still quit and get better conditions elsewhere and realize you should've left long ago :p
- falcolas 10y ago
  Or, just as frequent an occurrence, your pointy haired boss wears glasses instead of a tie, and nothing else has really changed. The grass sure looks greener on the other side, but unless you work for some truly heartless pond scum, you'll find a lot in common between any two employers.
  - jeremiep 10y ago
    True, but every time you switch jobs you can improve your conditions and salary. At some point you're bound to find a place you're comfortable at.
  - brogrammernot 10y ago
    I've learned over the years that it really comes down to do a ton of due diligence on the company. It's easier now with LinkedIn, Glassdoor and other sites that allow you to get a glimpse of what some employees think of the company. I also found that you can use LinkedIn to search for that company, and you can spend some time viewing profiles for former developers or another role you're wanting to take on. If you see that a handful of developers have left under a year while at that company and are doing a similar role at another company that's a red flag to me. I'd reach out to those developers and just get their honest opinion. This isn't always possible, but it has ended up with my last two employers being some of the best I ever had.
onion2k 10y ago
At face value you're right. Threatening to quit should leave managers in a panic because no one else can do your job. There's two main reasons why this might be the case. The first is because you're actually not very good. Great code can be worked on by someone else, which means if you not easily replaceable then it's because your code isn't easily accessible to other developers or there's knowledge that you haven't documented properly. In this case any competent employer should readily accept your resignation. The alternative is because you're the absolute best your employer can get for what you're paid. You could be amazing but there's always someone better if the employer is willing to write a bigger check. They could replace you with a team of 20 if they're willing to pay enough. In which case your employer has to choose whether to agree to your terms to keep you or to pay more and get someone who'll agree to their terms. Never underestimate how much an employer will pay to get their way.
- vonmoltke 10y ago
  There's a third possibility: the code your company generates is either so heavily managed or so relatively easy that they don't need "good" engineers, just "barely competent" engineers. I ran into that situation with a large defense contractor. They won't pay for quality partly because they don't need it, and they see all people as replaceable cogs.
- dominotw 10y ago
  > if you not easily replaceable then it's because your code isn't easily accessible to other developers No matter how good your code is it would be impossible that someone can hit the ground running right away. Meanwhile there are deadlines to meet.
  - onion2k 10y ago
    Meanwhile there are deadlines to meet. Deadlines can be moved. Resources can be allocated to projects to account for unforeseen events. Penalty payments can be paid. It's definitely not ideal but often established businesses can cope with someone leaving unexpectedly. It can kill a startup, but so can most things. What I'm saying is that you shouldn't be too surprised if a threat to leave is met with "Oh. That's a shame, but nevermind. Bye." You may feel you have a great deal of power over your employer because you see your role as important or even critical to the business, but they might see your role very differently.

All a programmer has to do to show his or her real power is utter the words 'I quit.' Then all the obviously more intelligent and better looking managers and business people start to lose their shit.

jeremiep 10y ago

And then you still quit and get better conditions elsewhere and realize you should've left long ago :p

falcolas 10y ago
Or, just as frequent an occurrence, your pointy haired boss wears glasses instead of a tie, and nothing else has really changed. The grass sure looks greener on the other side, but unless you work for some truly heartless pond scum, you'll find a lot in common between any two employers.
- jeremiep 10y ago
  True, but every time you switch jobs you can improve your conditions and salary. At some point you're bound to find a place you're comfortable at.
- brogrammernot 10y ago
  I've learned over the years that it really comes down to do a ton of due diligence on the company. It's easier now with LinkedIn, Glassdoor and other sites that allow you to get a glimpse of what some employees think of the company. I also found that you can use LinkedIn to search for that company, and you can spend some time viewing profiles for former developers or another role you're wanting to take on. If you see that a handful of developers have left under a year while at that company and are doing a similar role at another company that's a red flag to me. I'd reach out to those developers and just get their honest opinion. This isn't always possible, but it has ended up with my last two employers being some of the best I ever had.

onion2k 10y ago

At face value you're right. Threatening to quit should leave managers in a panic because no one else can do your job. There's two main reasons why this might be the case. The first is because you're actually not very good. Great code can be worked on by someone else, which means if you not easily replaceable then it's because your code isn't easily accessible to other developers or there's knowledge that you haven't documented properly. In this case any competent employer should readily accept your resignation. The alternative is because you're the absolute best your employer can get for what you're paid. You could be amazing but there's always someone better if the employer is willing to write a bigger check. They could replace you with a team of 20 if they're willing to pay enough. In which case your employer has to choose whether to agree to your terms to keep you or to pay more and get someone who'll agree to their terms. Never underestimate how much an employer will pay to get their way.

vonmoltke 10y ago
There's a third possibility: the code your company generates is either so heavily managed or so relatively easy that they don't need "good" engineers, just "barely competent" engineers. I ran into that situation with a large defense contractor. They won't pay for quality partly because they don't need it, and they see all people as replaceable cogs.
dominotw 10y ago
> if you not easily replaceable then it's because your code isn't easily accessible to other developers No matter how good your code is it would be impossible that someone can hit the ground running right away. Meanwhile there are deadlines to meet.
- onion2k 10y ago
  Meanwhile there are deadlines to meet. Deadlines can be moved. Resources can be allocated to projects to account for unforeseen events. Penalty payments can be paid. It's definitely not ideal but often established businesses can cope with someone leaving unexpectedly. It can kill a startup, but so can most things. What I'm saying is that you shouldn't be too surprised if a threat to leave is met with "Oh. That's a shame, but nevermind. Bye." You may feel you have a great deal of power over your employer because you see your role as important or even critical to the business, but they might see your role very differently.