Given how selective joshu claims to be in hiring, would be surprised if he turned down a developed who requested a mac pro and 3 x 24" or 30" monitors for both home and office, in addition to a macbook pro or macbook air.
A $20k pimped out setup or two is still less than a recruiter would charge, and hopefully about the same as the value of a developer's work to the company in 1 week.
I think Asana has the right idea, just letting people pick whatever they want within a $10k or so budget. There is some value in having commonality (spare parts, support, chargers), and I'd be surprised if anyone wanted anything except Apple or Lenovo laptops and high-end desktops with big monitors.
Valuing a developer's one week of work at $20K is a bit much (~$1M per year?). Also, I'd question the judgement of developer who thinks a $20K pimped-out setup, a Mac Pro and three 30" displays at both home and office, in addition to a laptop, is necessary.
If they expect you to work in that one spot more than anywhere else, the Aeron might be the most important thing you get! Nothing worse than a cheap, (eventually) painful chair. :|
This. Headphones sometimes help, but there are times when I think I'd be better off with a VT100 and a door. I wish anyone beyond Microsoft and Fog Creek realized what a huge waste it is to let random people knock me out of the zone incessantly.