[argonaut]

Though these generalizations are certainly dripping with bitterness, I have definitely seen bits and pieces of these phenomena in the startups I've worked at and the startups I've been around/interacted with through my work.

I've definitely seen cases where lack of defined roles leads to not a flat culture but in fact a culture where unspoken dynamics rule. I've seen "cultural fit" used to basically exclude a few introverts who aren't able to hit it off on a personal level with the founders (in this case, this meant liking to party and drink and talk superficially), which meant passing over some extraordinarily brilliant people. I've seen a lack of meetings lead not to collaboration, but to siloing of different activities. This is often not necessarily intentional, and the founders actually mean well, but it happens more often than you think.