[amyjess]

> “We are committed to operating like the world’s largest startup, and … that means removing layers.”

I learned a long time ago that behaving like a startup is not a good thing, and I've specifically oriented my career towards working at companies that don't even want to pretend to imitate startup culture. I'm very happy in enterprise-land.

[mingus88]

At that scale, it’s the worst of both worlds.

You set the expectation that you can deliver at the pace of a lean startup, but every step of the way you are slowed down by a process or internal dependency that is operating like a fortune 100 company.

Large companies should just fund startups and acquire them when the product has shipped than try to create a culture where teams are expected to operate a speedboat that is towed by an oceanliner.

[B-Con]

> Large companies should just fund startups and acquire them when the product has shipped

I mean, that's basically what big tech has been doing for the left 15 years., not then people get upset that "Foo Corp doesn't innovate, it only acquires".

[legitster]

Kinda. The sweet spot is working at a "mid-cap" company. The company is growing and you have resources and freedom to do things, but not so big that you are in a bureaucratic nightmare.

I tell people that the best size of company to work at is one that's just barely big enough to have an HR department.

[supportengineer]

It's hard to beat the authority and responsibility one personally has at a startup.

[ryandvm]

Lol. You'll have exactly 1/1,500,000 the authority and responsibility.

They don't mean empowering their workforce. "We want to act more like a startup" is code for we want less accountability for bad decisions.

[uvaursi]

Do we have any write ups or post mortems from WhatsApp employees prior to the acquisition and the massive buy out?

I want to (artificially perhaps) peg my projects to a smaller cohort of employees if it means the stress to them is worth it if they have the autonomy to ship stuff on their own accord, for a general feeling of having a successful and useful career.

[cosmicgadget]

It is especially not a good thing when you need to provide reliable services, coordinate across multiple business units, retain talent not chasing an equity payday, and protect your moat.

Full disclosure: I do not have an MBA.

[ryandvm]

100%

Finding out that one of the world's largest economic forces aspires to burn out their workforce and spend more time shooting from the hip is depressing.

[whazor]

I joined an actual startup and am also very happy. We are just focused on making the product work. Not on promo docs or headcount fighting.

[josefritzishere]

I have worked at both and... well they're just very different. It's mostly trade offs. What specifically for y'all?

[LargeWu]

There's dysfunction in both, it's just different types of dysfunction.

[ghaff]

As companies grow (and it's not binary), a lot of things (have to) change which may be to your taste--or may not be.

[somanyphotons]

What are the aspects that you're looking for from enterprise-land

[thih9]

Sane workload, work hours and vacation days for a start.

It’s 2025 and I still see “unlimited PTO” in many places.

[lotsofpulp]

That comes with high profit margin and moat (for your specific labor, not just the business's moat).

If you don't have leverage, you won't get those things regardless of enterprise or small business.

[thih9]

Sure but overtime in enterprise is paid. In a startup you might get some worthless equity.

Also, in startups these things still happen more often, the culture normalizes unpaid overtime, unused PTO, etc. E.g.:

> While overtime is a reality in both startups and large corporations, the difference lies in the motivation behind it. In startups, work goes beyond traditional hours, not out of obligation, but from a genuine passion and commitment to achieving shared goals.

source: https://www.sdsolutions.tech/post/what-is-a-startup-culture

[dpark]

> overtime in enterprise is paid.

Not in the US. Most enterprise software engineers are salaried and do not receive overtime pay.

[bodiekane]

And yet, millions of people work 40 hour weeks and take a couple vacations per year while working in razor-thin margin industries like grocery stores and low margin restaurants, manufacturing, agriculture, construction, retail, trucking and services ranging from hair stylists to accounting.

Sane working hours and vacation time should be taken as a given in the modern economy. Unusually long work hours should be reserved for unusually highly paid professions like investment banking and surgeons.

[lotsofpulp]

In the US, that might be true if you don't have kids, and/or don't aim to buy a home in a major metro. Otherwise, a lot of those people are going to be working multiple jobs, or relying on a higher earning spouse. Especially retail and restaurant workers. Most won't even get subsidized health insurance from their employer, and if they do, they are not going to be able to afford the deductibles with their income from one 40 hour per week job.