Got hired for my UI knowledge, then I get stuck doing backend work since I started, while the mountain of UI work just continues to grow and they refuse to let me work on it instead of hiring more backend help. Cool cool cool cool.

HR be dumb sluts sometimes.

@sariel it's not even HR. I tried to move teams but my manager and PM said we had too much to do to let me move. I was with what they told me for my current teams work when I got hired and then they immediately changed priorities on me.

@Nexion I would start looking for a new job then.

Fuck em, if they can't give you the work they hired you for, they will NEVER give you what you need. Huge red flags everywhere.

Wanna swap jobs? I had similar when I started... Why do companies do this?

@sariel The annoying part is that the work culture itself is amazing, but we keep getting top down directives from upper management and our parent company, and my teams PM keeps moving things around. I like the company but holy shit this is starting to really grate on me.

They're not enabling me to succeed. In my performance review, my boss said the only thing I need to do to get promoted is show I can mentor. Well I can't really do that if I'm not working with people on things I actually CAN mentor them with.

Seems like a lot of companies are doing this...

Was hired for maintaining software and programming.

Now spending more time on hardware and network stuff...

The list of changes on the software is growing and people are getting angry...

@atheist “why do companies do this?”

My old man, a former Navy Captain once said “behavior you fail to correct is behavior you allow to fester”.

I think companies do this because for far too long people weren’t as willing-and far too many were just financially unable to take a risk on themselves and leave employers who do it.

Don’t get me started with those sycophants who are too busy planting their lips firmly on the left butt cheek of management by saying “if your boss orders it, it’s your job” to notice they’re being taken advantage of and driven towards eventual burnout and say “no”.

You have power, people. The pandemic has made this abundantly clear. Your labor has value, and if your employer doesn’t want to recognize that by tasking you with work beyond your domain, I hope you’re in the position to leave and take your value somewhere it can be _mutually_ maximized.

Yeah, I didn't do much coz I've had major health problems the last 6 months. In some ways easy dull stuff has suited. But I'm now at the point where, yes if they fuck me around any more I'm leaving.

Ha. I pretty much just told my boss to find me UI work. I think he's nervous about losing me because now he's going to try harder. Convinced him of some preliminary work that needs to be done before the work that keeps getting delayed. Turns out you just need to be more firm.

@Nexion same same but different here.

C-level and E-level are taking a direct interest in the product when before they couldn't have cared less.

This usually means the following is happening:

- The PO is not delivering the warm fuzzies
- sales are down, so they're bored and worried that customers aren't engaging in the product, so they request changes to feel better about their slipping market share
- sales are slipping and they're planning on cutting the fat and are probing the product development team to do so.

Fact: outside of the CnE teams, product development is the most costly investment. If you want to stick around, make yourself invaluable and impossible to replace.

@sariel While I mostly agree, and that's what I strive to do, I think the mentality of "become irreplaceable" is flawed.

Do I want to be recognized for my work? Yes. Do I want to be compensated fairly for it? Also yes. Do I want to be the ONE person everyone brings all of their problems to? Hell no. I've been in that spot before and it sucks. You're constantly overloaded and people start having unrealistic expectations of you.

I want to build a platform that others can use and expand on while focusing on the problems that actually matter and will help people do their jobs more effectively. I don't write code for me. I write it for the person 5 years from now who has to support the shit I wrote.

EVERYONE is replaceable, it just depends on the timeframe the company needs. Depending on one or a few people is a terrible business decision, despite how much capitalism banks on it.

@Nexion yeah…making yourself “irreplaceable” probably placates our own egos and sense of competence and capability but companies continue to show that they are absolutely willing to exploit this instead of engaging in proper planning and resource management.