Developer Hegemony
by Erik Dietrich · first published 2017
59% recommend36% neutral5% critical
Why HN recommends it
Frames corporate hierarchy through optimists, pragmatists and idealists, arguing developers create the value yet get treated as a cost center. Suits developers wanting to understand office politics and go independent.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
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…creates value, is accurately represented as not as successful both in terms of money and prestige. I think this is a damn shame, and we should be striving to stop that. You may like Eric Dietrich's book Developer Hegemony[1]. He talks about both why the third group is less successful and how people within that group can potentially improve their situation within the current system. > I have found that the executive path…
on “Three Paths in the Tech Industry: Founder, Executive, or Employee” ↗Your comment made me think of a book that I read recently, Developer Hegemony[1]. It explores how the modern corporate forces us into three roles: pragmatists who opt out of the game and find their identity elsewhere ("I'd rather be fishing"), idealist middle management who sacrifice…
on “People Start Hating Their Jobs at Age 35” ↗> Where does that leave people like doctors who earnestly help their patients? In fiction? Back on the original topic, Erik Dietrich's "Developer Hegemony" has a less extreme view of the corporation; worth reading IMO.
on “'Fake' Amazon workers defend company on Twitter” ↗…managers 4 working in silicon valley with that cost of living 5 developers can be happier and make what they want working for themselves, doing consulting, freelance, or a startup. Check out Erik Dietrich's "Developer Hegemony"
on “Why Developers Leave Big Name Software Companies” ↗"Developer Hegemony: The Future of Labor" by Erik Dietrich is an interesting read. Erik talks about his experiences in office politics in large companies. He makes some interesting observations and analogies. Recommended.…
on “Ask HN: I have constantly fallen prey to office politics. Need Advice” ↗…into our own, existing corporations have to pay us as consultants or continue to increase pay to keep that talent. In time, I think we will see it is the corporate structure that is in a bubble. (See "Developer Hegemony" by Erik Dietrich)
on “Are We in the Middle of a Programming Bubble?” ↗…is the key. So I wonder, idly, if metaprogramming---no, really, the meta of programming, like "Don't Call Yourself A Programmer" (https://www.kalzumeus.com/2011/10/28/dont-call-yourself-a-pr... ) and "Developer Hegemony" (https://www.amazon.com/Developer-Hegemony-Erik-Dietrich/dp/0... )---might develop some more, esp. among the Lisp communities. When the language is no longer the barrier, you start to realize that other…
on “Emacs Users Are Like Terry Pratchett’s Igors (2013)” ↗Have you read Erik Dietrich's Developer Hegemony?[1] Perhaps a good way to grow is to pivot into his idea of an efficiencier firm, and you may be in a unique position to do so. It means you take on partners instead of employees, and completely bypass…
on “Ask HN: Small dev agency. How to grow our business?” ↗I recommend "Developer Hegemony: The Future of Labor" by Erik Dietrich. It put into words a lot of what I was feeling but couldn't articulate. Hopefully that will do the same for you. If you understand what you're feeling, you'll know…
on “Ask HN: I think I hate the software development industry? Am I crazy?” ↗Have you read Developer Hegemony by Erik Dietrich? I wish I could tell you it has the full solution to your problems. I don't think it does, but it's well worth the read, because it does such a good job at mapping out the problem space…
on “Ask HN: What's the best way to monetize actual programming?” ↗This is my experience. I've come around to thinking it's a "trough of disillusionment" thing combined with the nature of hierarchical organizations. Try reading "Developer Hegemony" by Erik Dietrich. I'm not sure about his remedies yet, but he presents a good model for idealistic types to understand corporate pathology.
on “Ask HN: Is it just me?” ↗…day with non programmers telling us when we can and cannot refactor. It's nuts to me that a skilled profession - that not many can do - lets themselves get micro-managed like this. If anyone has read Developer Hegemony, I'm fully on board with that general premise - we start operating like lawyers with partnerships, and turn bosses into customers. Though that does require us to think of ourselves as professionals not…
on “Times are great for programmers now. How does it end?” ↗Coops is one of the structures that the author talks about in "Developer Hegemony". The bulk of the book is about the inverted pyramid that modern software development houses are (with production being at the bottom, and manager on top). I really like this passage: > “Consider a…
on “List of Worker-Owned Tech Cooperatives Worldwide” ↗Why Nations Fail (amazing!) Chimpanzee Politics (interesting) Corporate Confidential (paranoid, but worth a read) Developer Hegemony (red pill for developers!!!) Bargaining For Advantage (reasonable) Tempo: Timing, Tactics and Strategy in Narrative-Driven Decision Making (abstract as hell but rewarding) Thinking Fast and Slow (loved…
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2018?” ↗There's a good book I read recently called Developer Hegemony, and I think you might like it. It breaks down the archetypes within companies, talks about what it takes to succeed as an employee or an executive, and then discusses an alternative route that we software…
on “Three Paths in the Tech Industry: Founder, Executive, or Employee” ↗