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by scottrafer 5061 days ago
I'm applying it differently, and to the business before his pivot. I'm talking about his conversation with Facebook and his accusation that Facebook was underhanded. He didn't do a proper job of disrupting FB's economics, distribution, or organizational limitations, so he's got no grounds to complain that they 'bullied' him. That should have been his expectation.
3 comments
petegrif 5061 days ago
Scott if I read you correctly I think this is a profound misunderstanding of how to potentially build a viable business on a platform. Let's examine two extremes.

a) dev builds software on the platform that doesn't disrupt the platforms economics, distribution, or organizational limitations. b) dev builds software on the platform that does disrupt the platforms economics, distribution, or organizational limitations.

You seem to be saying that if he had done a 'proper job' he would have pursued strategy b. But surely that is precisely the case where you can expect to be bullied. It is strategy a. where you develop software that does none of those things, but adds value to the platform by adding value to the users of the platform where you are least likely to be bullied. In these circumstances you are no threat and you are complementing the platform.

Strategy a can only be pursued when you are not dependent on the platform and hence are much harder to bully.

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fusiongyro 5061 days ago
In case A, what's stopping the platform from re-doing themselves whatever it is you've done?
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scottrafer 5061 days ago
+1 That's why Case A doesn't work for me.
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rhizome 5061 days ago
That should have been his expectation.

I mentioned elsewhere that, personal opinion only, of course, that this expectation is the sign of bad mindedness. Think of the logical implications of this point.

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scottrafer 5061 days ago
It was lazy of me to inherit Dalton's term 'bully.' It should have been his expectation to only be compensated for EVA (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_value_added) and not count on Facebook's stewardship of its developers.

And, when I don't like the tone of a meeting, I politely leave. Facebook's offices are physically difficult to enter, not leave.

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fusiongyro 5061 days ago
D'oh! :)
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