[marcus_holmes]

I always picture a random middle manager in $large_organisation being told about something like this, and then they work out the angles and try to find the benefit.

If the method works, and it shows that the logging feature Fred got so much credit for is storing passwords, what are the political implications of that? Can our intrepid middle manager steal some of Fred's glory? Or is Fred an ally and it should be carefully handled? Or do they sit on it and wait until an opportune moment to destroy Fred?

This is the kind of reasoning process I think goes on, because I've seen very few large organisations make actually-good technical decisions.

[shmeeed]

Sadly, this is not as far-fetched as we here on HN would like it to be.

[psunavy03]

The fact that you think random middle managers are all that psychopathic really says more about you than it does some hypothetical middle manager.

Are their psychopaths and Machiavellian schemers in management? Certainly. Are they the majority? Almost certainly not, unless you're working for absolutely the wrong company.

As the Brits would say, "cock-up before conspiracy."

[Capricorn2481]

No. It may not be conscious Machiavellian scheme, but it's a common attitude among middle managers. They are extremely sensitive to their reputation, which is why they punish people who make them look bad, even if it's something good for the company. Finding security vulnerabilities or wasted resources is met with an ambiguous hostility.

And unfortunately, a lot of people aren't emotionally intelligent enough to recognize that many managers use emotional reactions to redirect the room away from them. Because if you're the angry one, people won't ask questions like "didn't someone mention the possibility of this to you 6 months ago?"

[psunavy03]

Everyone is extremely sensitive to their reputation. That is just human nature. Someone who can't factor that into their actions and communications is frankly lacking basic social skills.

[Capricorn2481]

> Everyone is extremely sensitive to their reputation. That is just human nature

I don't really agree with that, but let's say I do. Middle management is a unique position where their sensitivity is a bigger liability to everyone else. They have some power, but not a lot. They ironically have higher visibility in the company than upper management. And the job requires 0 technical understanding of what they manage.

So that puts them in an awkward position that is often abused. If they feel someone is going to get in trouble, they will make sure that's not them, which is a terribly common instinct. When a developer tells the company there is a problem to address that could threaten the product, that's a good thing that should be welcomed. Instead, many middle managers see that developer as the problem.

> Someone who can't factor that into their actions and communications is frankly lacking basic social skills.

No argument there.