The Swamp

Ryan wrote: ↑Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:00 am I haven’t worn ActualPants since March.

It’s pronounced “freed man”

rass wrote: ↑Sat Dec 05, 2020 9:17 am

Ryan wrote: ↑Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:00 am I haven’t worn ActualPants since March.

It’s pronounced “freed man”

I was thinking a few days ago that I haven't tucked in my shirt since mid-March.

Ryan wrote: ↑Sat Dec 05, 2020 8:00 am I haven’t worn ActualPants since March.

Actual pants being anything that would look weird at the gym or like khakis?

Anything above joggers/track pants/whatever.

Man am I glad the term JAWGAHS became a thing after I left Boston.

Great day for Slack to break.

P.D.X. wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 1:09 pm Great day for Slack to break.

A broken Slack is still better than the trash pile that Skype for Business is

phxgators wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 1:15 pm

P.D.X. wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 1:09 pm Great day for Slack to break.

A broken Slack is still better than the trash pile that Skype for Business is

And MS Teams.

Sabo wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 2:14 pm

phxgators wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 1:15 pm

P.D.X. wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 1:09 pm Great day for Slack to break.

A broken Slack is still better than the trash pile that Skype for Business is

And MS Teams.

Never had an issue with MS Teams, but I'm being put on so many damned teams and projects lately, it's overwhelming. Never used Slack, but it's the origin of several workplace complaints I've conducted. I think there is something about the Slack interface that makes people more comfortable saying stupid shit to coworkers than any of the other platforms/apps/programs or whatever the right term is. From screen shots in evidence, I think people feel more like they are sending a text than a workplace communication.

I like Teams, but barely ever used Slack (because Skype 4B sucked and was dying(?)) before the company decided to go all-in on Teams so can't really compare the two.

The Sybian wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 3:43 pm

Sabo wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 2:14 pm

phxgators wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 1:15 pm

P.D.X. wrote: ↑Mon Jan 04, 2021 1:09 pm Great day for Slack to break.

A broken Slack is still better than the trash pile that Skype for Business is

And MS Teams.

Never had an issue with MS Teams, but I'm being put on so many damned teams and projects lately, it's overwhelming. Never used Slack, but it's the origin of several workplace complaints I've conducted. I think there is something about the Slack interface that makes people more comfortable saying stupid shit to coworkers than any of the other platforms/apps/programs or whatever the right term is. From screen shots in evidence, I think people feel more like they are sending a text than a workplace communication.

I've been involved with an ongoing political battle in my company over Slack vs. Teams. Our editorial groups want to use Slack, but my boss is adamant that Slack isn't necessary and that Teams can do everything Slack does. Did some testing of our editorial processes in both Slack and Teams, and Slack was easier to use and had better integration with SharePoint than Teams.

So yeah, fuck Teams.

Fuck teams because it's allowed on of my contracted employers to "require" sales meetings every week.

We're transitioning from Slack to Teams sometime soon. I think it's gonna be painful even though they're probably 90% the same thing.

And yeah, Slack being down this morning was a pain in the ass.

Just got word our company is being acquired today by Upland Software

What that means for me personally, I don't know. I suspect they're going to be mostly hands-off for awhile at least so I have that going for me.

But never a dull moment for the kid here. Out of one frying pan then into another.

All hands meeting right now and the inauguration of a new president is at best the second-most consequential thing to happen to me today.

Put another way...I appear to be truly and royally fucked.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 10:37 am All hands meeting right now and the inauguration of a new president is at best the second-most consequential thing to happen to me today.

Put another way...I appear to be truly and royally fucked.

Brian - I am so sorry. Will hold a thought.

Shit man. Hope it turns out OK.

That's pretty shitty. Fingers crossed

i picked the wrong time to sell all my belongs and move to another country. Realize why they couldn't but kind of wish one of the owners of my company had given me a heads-up back in October back when this acquisition started before I did that.

To tie it back to the previous discussion they also use MS Teams instead of Slack, which just...what the fuck! Why?

Fuck, man. Sorry to hear that.

Sorry to hear, Brian. Best wishes.

Damn, Brian. Sorry to hear that.

Shit Brian.

The Biden Era sucks.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 10:53 am To tie it back to the previous discussion they also use MS Teams instead of Slack, which just...what the fuck! Why?

$$$

I'm in limbo until they send out offer letters next Friday. Your guess is as good as mine if they decide to keep on the highly paid guy who lives in Mexico.

Keep your chin up, Brian.

Good luck, man.

Good luck, Bri.

In a weird way I almost hope I get laid off because I can tell this new company is gonna suck balls and we're committed to living down here through at least March 2022, so hey -- one year vacation with 25 percent of it paid for (severance).

On the other hand I would still need about another $75-100K in income to bridge the gap between now and age 59.5 when we can tap retirement accounts without penalty.

Maybe I could make $10-15K a year doing some writing. It's not ridiculous or inconceivable and it would be a hell of a lot more fun than what I'm doing now. On the other hand, we could end up being basically broke in about 8 years, so...we'll see I guess!

The universe will provide.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:23 pm In a weird way I almost hope I get laid off because I can tell this new company is gonna suck balls and we're committed to living down here through at least March 2022, so hey -- one year vacation with 25 percent of it paid for (severance).

On the other hand I would still need about another $75-100K in income to bridge the gap between now and age 59.5 when we can tap retirement accounts without penalty.

Maybe I could make $10-15K a year doing some writing. It's not ridiculous or inconceivable and it would be a hell of a lot more fun than what I'm doing now. On the other hand, we could end up being basically broke in about 8 years, so...we'll see I guess!

The universe will provide.

You could make 10K transcribing. It's really boring and tedious though.

degenerasian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:25 pm

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:23 pm In a weird way I almost hope I get laid off because I can tell this new company is gonna suck balls and we're committed to living down here through at least March 2022, so hey -- one year vacation with 25 percent of it paid for (severance).

On the other hand I would still need about another $75-100K in income to bridge the gap between now and age 59.5 when we can tap retirement accounts without penalty.

Maybe I could make $10-15K a year doing some writing. It's not ridiculous or inconceivable and it would be a hell of a lot more fun than what I'm doing now. On the other hand, we could end up being basically broke in about 8 years, so...we'll see I guess!

The universe will provide.

You could make 10K transcribing. It's really boring and tedious though.

And my job isn't? How many hours a week are we talking? Because 10K for like 10 hours a week doesn't sound so bad (what's that - $20/hr?) but I'm not doing it for $5/hr. I'd rather go back to the States and work at Taco Bell.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:23 pm The universe will provide.

Starting to sound like another guy who left the rat race behind and took some drastic actions to finance his escape to Mexico. Be careful.

Life sure has a sick sense of humor, doesn't it?

If I get fired maybe DSafe and I can start our podcast and that movie would be episode #1. That would be some real noggin-scratching kismet right there, you guys.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:41 pm If I get fired maybe DSafe and I can start our podcast and that movie would be episode #1. That would be some real noggin-scratching kismet right there, you guys.

Or you guys can start a band called Noggin Scratching Kismet.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:29 pm

degenerasian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:25 pm

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:23 pm In a weird way I almost hope I get laid off because I can tell this new company is gonna suck balls and we're committed to living down here through at least March 2022, so hey -- one year vacation with 25 percent of it paid for (severance).

On the other hand I would still need about another $75-100K in income to bridge the gap between now and age 59.5 when we can tap retirement accounts without penalty.

Maybe I could make $10-15K a year doing some writing. It's not ridiculous or inconceivable and it would be a hell of a lot more fun than what I'm doing now. On the other hand, we could end up being basically broke in about 8 years, so...we'll see I guess!

The universe will provide.

You could make 10K transcribing. It's really boring and tedious though.

And my job isn't? How many hours a week are we talking? Because 10K for like 10 hours a week doesn't sound so bad (what's that - $20/hr?) but I'm not doing it for $5/hr. I'd rather go back to the States and work at Taco Bell.

Depends how fast you type and how fast you listen.

brian wrote: ↑Wed Jan 20, 2021 4:41 pm If I get fired maybe DSafe and I can start our podcast and that movie would be episode #1. That would be some real noggin-scratching kismet right there, you guys.

I can't wait to do a live read for, oh, let's say, Magic Spoon.

Sorry for not saying so earlier, but thanks for the good thoughts. With some time to process it, I'll be fine. Already had a couple friends tell me I'd be a lock to get in where they're working (not at same salary of course, but at this stage I don't need to make what I'm making though it would be nice).

Also, I might end up being asked to stay, though the concern there would be for how long and what the new culture would be like and that's the biggest issue really -- I had a really great place to work with mostly great people and that's gone now because we're owned by some vampiric VC play that buys companies and assimilates them into a soulless borg. It's the living embodiment of everything I hate about America and I either have to suck it up and be an ass-kissing automaton for two years to make my nut to retire or I'm going to have to scramble and work more years with a less certain future.

That said, there are people with worse problems in this world, so to bring it all home -- I'll be fine.

brian wrote: ↑Thu Jan 21, 2021 9:09 am Sorry for not saying so earlier, but thanks for the good thoughts. With some time to process it, I'll be fine. Already had a couple friends tell me I'd be a lock to get in where they're working (not at same salary of course, but at this stage I don't need to make what I'm making though it would be nice).

Also, I might end up being asked to stay, though the concern there would be for how long and what the new culture would be like and that's the biggest issue really -- I had a really great place to work with mostly great people and that's gone now because we're owned by some vampiric VC play that buys companies and assimilates them into a soulless borg. It's the living embodiment of everything I hate about America and I either have to suck it up and be an ass-kissing automaton for two years to make my nut to retire or I'm going to have to scramble and work more years with a less certain future.

That said, there are people with worse problems in this world, so to bring it all home -- I'll be fine.

Good to hear, Brian.

The Glassdoor reviews of my new company are...well, they're something.

Here's a representative example:

Pros
Its a job. Only really pros are possible remote work, unlimited PTO. There are nice people at Upland, but the lack of leadership, culture overrules that.
Cons
By far in my 15+ year career this is the worst acquisition I have ever been though and I have been through several. If you could draw up a list containing “worst missteps during an acquisition” I think Upland succeeds on every level.
First off, this company’s success is based on it acquiring 1 company every quarter. This is the model explained during the acquisition announcement. At best, this is an short term acquisition fueled company NOT a software company. There is no innovation here. There is no engineering here. There is also no leadership/direction here for the companies acquired (technical or otherwise). The model is acquire, strip the company by 50% and then do nothing while all the talented people who made the company what it is walk out of the door. Offer minimal communication during the entire process. Beyond the first 1-2 days after announcing acquisition, barely show up on site to offer leadership or guidance to the employees.
Do not work here if you value an employee culture - there is none. Do not work here if you value innovation. There is none. To put it plainly, do not work here if you value being valued. There are many, many, (many) other companies that will treat you better than Upland. However, if you are looking for a job - it is a job. I really wish I could offer more positives than that - trust me I really tried to do so.
Advice to Management
Stop the acquire and cut at all costs (for short term quarterly gains) model. You claim to believe in the companies you buy. Show it! Invest in the people / company you just bought. If you really care about the acquired product/company, please take some time to LEARN and get to know the business, people, values, culture, etc before making ANY changes. Although most of the companies are small, they were obviously successful in their niche to make them worth buying - why change that?? Listen. Communicate. Be onsite every day for a couple months after acquisition. Don’t just show up one day, announce an acquisition, disappear for a month, kill all perks and let everyone wonder what is happening. In the SaaS industry, people WILL leave in the face of uncertainty. Many were working at the company you acquired for the culture and people - if that changes they will leave (and in my experience do leave - quickly). You will lose all talent that made the company successful. Obviously some fat can be trimmed during the acquisition of any company, but just blindly slashing based on a spreadsheet formula is the worst way to proceed!
Unless of course the plan is to buy, slash, look positive on paper for the quarter then put the product in maintenance mode. From what I have seen (unfortunately) I think that is the plan...