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February 8, 2009
Twits Know: Google Quietly Laying Off Engineers
If you can believe conversations on Twitter, it seems Google has been quietly laying off engineers and changing the scope of their jobs. Apparently some of the work done by the "contractors" laid off over the past couple of months is now being added to their work load.
I follow a lot of people on Twitter - friends, industry acquaintances and many others (including major names in the industry). It was a public conversation started between a couple of the latter that got my attention.
Mary Hodder - or at least someone using her name at Twitter - founder of Dabble, a video search and metadata company, and a well known voice in the web space, mentioned that a couple of her engineering friends at Google had been let go, as well as others.
Her comments quickly started a Twitter conversation between her and John Battelle - well known tech guru, writer and founder of Wired and Federated Media Publishing. In short order, Motley Fool journalist and noted geek Tim Beyers joined in, as did a couple of other tech people.
Disgruntled engineers working 18 hour days, poor severance packages, and general malaise seem to be growing at Google - the place everyone wanted to work at one time. Even last year Google was able to get senior VPs to take lesser jobs to join the company that 'does no evil'.
I have pieced together a bunch of the twits and have laid them out below.
Mary Hodder
Talkng to friend laid off from Google Friday. Others in their eng. gp as well. They don't want to discuss publicly, but R ok w. my telling.
John Battelle
RT @MaryHodder: Talkng to friend laid off from Google Friday. Others in their eng. gp as well. They don't want to discuss publicly, but...
Mary Hodder
We think Goog is quietly laying ppl off so as not to alert press. Mgrs have mandate to reduce headcnt, no matter how critical the project.
Tim Beyers
@MaryHodder Wow. That's *very* big news. Can I refer to your tweets about the layoffs if I choose to write about it for The Motley Fool?
Tim Beyers
@MaryHodder Perhaps a severance issue but I'm more curious that these cuts come after the hullabaloo over options repricing.
Mary Hodder
@milehighfool don't know but the severance pkgs for engs don't sound too good. don't know if due to longevity=they got stock before, or what
@johnbattelle full time eng on a critical path project. so were others.. 4-5 yr employees.
@johnbattelle no.. i think they are all in shock. they are all excellent engs.. so i think they will zip right into other jobs. but strange.
@johnbattelle i agree.. as more are laid off from Goog, i believe some will talk and it will be out.
@johnbattelle oddly, before this wk 2 othr Goog frnds told me uncomfortably they want to leave..was shocked, they hav grt jobs, but pressure
@johnbattelle thot Goog just wasn't fun place anymore, but now think it could be really unpleasantly bad for ppl. don't know, just anecdotal
Cindy Stanford
@MaryHodder How bad can the pressure be at Google that someone would want to leave a great job when the economy is what it is?
Mary Hodder
@hci don't know, but these ppl sounded pretty uncomfortable. working 18 hr days .. if you have the big stock, might make you want to go.
Cindy Stanford
@MaryHodder I see, yes... 18 hrs/day, week after week. It's a good reason to walk away if you have the assets to be financially independent.
Mary Hodder
@hci y, hard to say in 140 char, but for those w gd stock, they may leave, others.. no grt stock, may be in rough situation. hard to tell.
@moon no.. projects still there. my impression is Mgr told to reduce.. so they got rid of a couple of ppl.
@milehighfool my ?, is goog doing this quietly, trying to keep severances under control, these are the least likely to talk ppl.. so..
John Battelle
@MaryHodder I doubt it. Goog knows that people talk. Right?!
Interestingly two weeks ago, Valleywag had written that as many as 5% of Google's engineers could be laid off in the coming months. "[I]f the rumor's true. Google has approximately 6,000 engineers; a 5 percent cut, 300 people, would barely be felt by the organization... But the fear in the Googleplex is well-founded... And we hear that Google cofounders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, who set out to recreate at the Googleplex the academic environment they knew at Stanford University, are growing increasingly disenchanted with how soft and spoiled Google's engineers have become," Valley Wag reported.
Guess 18 hour days will see how soft the engineers have become - sort of like a football camp that pushes players until they quit. Should be some interesting conversations on Twiiter and other places this week.
Posted by Frank Watson on February 8, 2009 11:07 PM
Comments
HI,
Yes that was me talking with John and others. So.. I wasn't on Bill Moyers. That was Jay Rosen. I just commented on his blog.
Everyone I know at Google who is an engineer works really hard, long hours.
I get the impression that the project these guys were on is critical, and now, they probably can't do it. Sounds like a major screw up made in haste to cut costs.
But what I do know is, hiring ppl are already clamoring for them because of their unique experience and great work. Which is the good news.
mary
mary hodder February 8, 2009 11:57 PM
Sorry Mary will correct... I know a few as well that could work any where...
AussieWebmaster February 9, 2009 12:04 AM
I have a number of friends at Google, and I do get the feeling that it isn't as fun as it used to be. At the same time, it's hard for me to imagine that Google is putting folks through a Bataan Death March. The company is not in any imminent danger, and the management is intelligent enough to know that it doesn't make sense to burn out your best and brightest. Especially considering that, even in this terrible hiring market, those folks will still do pretty well. Curious to learn more.
Daniel Tunkelang February 9, 2009 12:23 AM
Just an FYI. The word twits is actually a trademark of TWiT LLC (Leo Laporte's Netcast network). Twitter has agreed not to use that term and have replaced it with tweets. I'm sure he won't care too much, but for future reference.
Nathan February 9, 2009 7:44 AM
I was just laid off, from a top 100 employer in Canada. The people who didn't get laid off, were the ones who didn't mind working 10 - 12 hour days (unpaid). I put my foot down, after 8 to 9 per day...and so...I got shown the door.
that ain't right...in my books.
Laid Off February 9, 2009 9:08 AM
Nathan,
I doubt that will hold up: You can't trademark (or at least defend) common dictionary words, even if you're using them in a new way.
Dan February 9, 2009 11:53 AM
and you guys are all aware how Google all of the sudden their christmas bonus, right? every year since the beginning, google employees get $1000 cash for the holiday bonus. this last year, without even mentioning it ahead of time, just a few days before xmas, google announced that they were giving out unlocked android gphones instead. that pretty much sucked for eveyone who factored in the 1000 in their budgets (google people don't actually make much money but rely on bonuses instead) and those that cut their contracts with their cell phone providers early so they could join tmobile to get a gphone when it came out. i know a google employee who asked google first if they intended to give employees a phone before he had to pay $600 in cancellation fees to cingular so he could switch to tmobile to get androud. just a month later, google gave out the unlocked phones for free. if my friend had only waited... but who knew.
i'm also aware that managers are indeed mandated to cut headcount. my friend was instructed to find a reason to rationalize letting of a couple of people. my friend was deeply troubled by the manner they went about it. my friend had to have good people let go of for no real good reason. i wonder if those people are having a hard time colelcting unemployment benefits because they were fired for "cause" rather than being laid off.
birdy February 10, 2009 1:26 PM
Well, at least they got phones. The economy is just in a bad situation these past few months that I wouldn't be surprised that these things are happening even in Google. And its only going to get worse.
EarRings February 11, 2009 1:03 PM
I do get the feeling that it isn't as fun as it used to be. At the same time, it's hard for me to imagine that Google is putting folks through a Bataan Death March. The company is not in any imminent danger, and the management is intelligent enough to know that it doesn't make sense to burn out your best and brightest. Especially considering that, even in this terrible hiring market, those folks will still do pretty well.
club penguin June 9, 2009 7:45 AM
This last year, without even mentioning it ahead of time, just a few days before xmas, google announced that they were giving out unlocked android gphones instead. that pretty much sucked for eveyone who factored in the 1000 in their budgets (google people don't actually make much money but rely on bonuses instead) and those that cut their contracts with their cell phone providers early so they could join tmobile to get a gphone when it came out.
movie online July 24, 2009 10:18 AM
Despite this news I bet Google is still booming. They may have over hired which doesn't surprise me for an internet monopoly. At least these engineers are leaving with Google on their resume.
Kids Games August 31, 2009 6:13 PM
I ageere, Nathan,
I doubt that will hold up: You can't trademark (or at least defend) common dictionary words, even if you're using them in a new way.
watch movies September 6, 2009 12:26 PM
It's very helpful for us.Thanks.
Sarah
watch videos September 6, 2009 12:28 PM
I ageere, Nathan,
I doubt that will hold up: You can't trademark (or at least defend) common dictionary words, even if you're using them in a new way.
Thanks.
watch movies October 1, 2009 5:53 AM
