Ask HN: What has your work taught you that other people don't realize?

Re:Ask HN: What has your work taught you that other people d... by jfim on Tuesday January 14, 2020 @02:25AM (#22042618)

I'd both agree and disagree with that statement.

There are people who simply cannot be effectively replaced. That does not mean that the powers that be will not replace them. For example, a startup might have a critical engineer who happens to know how everything works or holds everything together. They can be replaced, although this may have a severe impact on the startup, including the failure of the startup.

To your point, even if someone is critical to the success of an organization does not mean that they won't ever be replaced by poor management.

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Re:Ask HN: What has your work taught you that other people d... by 2rsf on Tuesday January 14, 2020 @02:47AM (#22042728)

While I agree that "never" is a strong word, we usually over estimate ours and others importance and irreplaceablity.

Sometimes replacement of a critical engineer might even do good to a company by forcing them to break the silo.

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Re:Ask HN: What has your work taught you that other people d... by goto11 on Tuesday January 14, 2020 @02:43AM (#22042714)

That would not necessarily be poor management though. If a single person is irreplaceable, it is a major risk for any organization.

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