Why is Elon Musk creating what seems to be the most toxic working environment among major tech companies in 2022?

For the fourth week in the row, Musk keeps turning up the heat and finding new, cruel ways to make it clear to current software engineers that their jobs are not secure. First, there were ~50% layoffs, where external engineers from Tesla and SpaceX had the final say on who stayed or went. Next, it was firing people who criticized the leadership, even if it was done internally on Twitter’s Slack. Then, it was making the remaining employees pledge to work long hours. And now, it’s firing based on arbitrary coding reviews without any feedback.

Why put people through multiple rounds of firings? Why keep laying people off three days after Musk said layoffs were completed?

I don’t have the answers, but what Musk is doing is managing through fear. Software engineers now know that the only way they can be safe is to submit code that counts as “hardcore,” every single week.

What is satisfactory code in Musk’s opinion? No one can tell.

In what is hard to comprehend, Twitter is actively trying to recruit back experienced engineers who resigned last week. I talked with current software engineers at the company whose managers asked them for recommendations on who to “bring back” from those who resigned last week. Managers are hoping to get former, experienced engineers back because many teams are deprived of institutional knowledge and manpower.

I have a hard time working out who would want to return, given the cruelty and senselessness of how Twitter fires people for opaque reasons based on a code review, without warning. I also don’t know who will opt to join Twitter, knowing this is how the company operates and that they will have less job security than in any other job.

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