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20+ years in the business here and this is my observation:
There as assholes everywhere, humans are just built that way. But what I have started to enounter more often now then ever before is that socially awkward nerdy person merged with the spoilt woke gen Z type. Those who lack the ability to interact with others in a healthy way (old school nerds), but still demand their voice to be heard simply because it's everyone's right to have a say about anything regardless of if you should or know what you're talking about. People in their 20s literally stomping their feet like a toddler to get their way. And you can't say anything, oh no, because they have very fragile feelings. -
I think tech sector is one of those most progressive ones. We have some of the best pay and benefits, everyone is Welcome, life-work balance is some of the best I've seen. But at the same time, as was mentioned, assholes are everywhere, they just stand out more in an industry like this. Not to mentioned all the snowflakes gravitate towards the industry, so you end up hearing a lot about it. We've seen this all our life and during school. People treat Software engineering jobs as if it's "just computers". So we constantly get people with 0 experience, no formal training and then they end up being slow and useless 90% of the time. Some don't, but many do. And then It's viewed as being toxic environment too. But ultimately It's a business.
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There are two tech industries. One consists of unconventional, somewhat socially awkward people who are interested in all sorts of random things and don't play politics because they're not interested in it. This is the good tech industry. Unfortunately we get called toxic because we can't keep up with (or understand) the rules.
Then there is the bullshit tech industry, which is actually a project management industry, and which genuinely is toxic. -
just like any other industry, it attracts people of a certain ilk due to the perceived wealth it can bring. i'd say the decent people outweight the un-decent by a large margin but i have worked for a very ethical company for half of my career, so my experience is skewed compared to most of y'all i suppose.
compare that to car sales - literally a hive of narcs and sociopaths fumbling in a race to the bottom. you literally cannot be in that industry and have personal ethics, unless you hate making money -
Chemical industry is way more toxic...
Sounds like I'm joking but I'm actively combating other use of the word "toxic" because it's largely a meaningless blanked statement that avoids naming the real problems. And that is harmful in itself by prohibiting change.
There are some cultural issues in general that stem from male dominance. But the actual level of social/political issues are highly specific to the company and often the team you are in.
They taught you a lot..🙋🙋
Microsoft tech summit... Doesn't need a comment
This is my first ever post on DevRant, and it will be more of a question: Is the tech sector more toxic than others?
I've been working for my entire adult life in tech, supporting tech companies of basically any scale. I've always worked in engineering teams, building the core software/product of the company. After years of passion and working hard, I believe I gained some skills in what I do.
However, every so often I reach a point where I feel burned out by all the chaos going on around me. I work as an "expert" in engineering and frequently I get the feeling that I'm not being listened to. Any feedback I give seems to be disregarded.
On top of that, I've met many people with a rather aggressive/abusive communication style. Engineers who truly believe they're far above and beyond everyone else, but with little to back that up. Talking shit about their predecessors, trashing junior engineers,...
I've seen behavior toward women that is grossly inappropriate. I've seen female coworkers cry more than once because they don't feel heard. I've seen coworkers being criticized for personal life choices they made.
In almost every company I've worked at, there was at least one engineer who was so stubborn that it became nearly impossible to work with. Just shutting people up, forcing the rest to follow their plan, and failing to provide any form of accountability when results don't pay off.
Here's the thing. I love developing products. I care about the people who want to use them. I really try to be nice to the people I work with. I started working in this sector because I really wanted to make a difference. However, all of that melts as snow on a sunny day, when I experience toxic behavior.
I am wondering if this is the same in every sector or if these problems are specific to working in tech. Is it maybe because tech is male-dominated and we've lost touch?
Every so often, when I lose my job or leave by burning out, I wonder... Is the grass greener on the other side? Would I be happier choosing another career?
rant
communication
tech
toxicity