The Pie Problem: A performance assessment parable

Reminded me of another article I saw on HN recently, where sometimes a lot of the work done by a senior software engineer is "being glue", which is not as recognizable. When it comes time to slice the pie for stamps, a "glue" baker would probably get a pretty small slice: https://noidea.dog/glue

Also reminded me of a place I used to work which grew from being a flat organization to a more hierarchical one. Once the hierarchies were introduced, there was fierce competition to get to those few coveted spots, and it sadly changed a lot of the dynamics around the place. People who used to not care about position and recognition were suddenly faced with it making a much more recognizable impact in their lives, and it was a lot harder to dismiss as "not the point of it all".

Hi Kent,

I've read a few of your substack entries, and I'm having a hard time drawing out the point of the thought exercise in this one. Attribution and packaging - if that's what stamping and slicing means - aren't inherently at odds with making products people want or dividing labor efficiently.

Consumers should drive the latter, and product owners should manage the former, though incentivizing them to do so is tricky.