Corporate Confidential

What Hacker News says

1. ndesaulniersAug 2024
   HR is not your friend. Corporate Confidential by Cynthia Shapiro is a recommended read.

   My advice; get a better offer elsewhere, then see if HR wants to pay you your worth.

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2. anonym29Nov 2022
   I would like to offer some tips for those faced with the potential of layoffs that I have compiled. I understand much of these come too late for those already affected, but for those worried about the prospect, these can help to ease the pain if it does happen:

   • Check if your company pays out unused PTO, sick days, etc as cash. If they do, do not use any of the applicable type(s) unless you are going to lose it.

   • Have a LinkedIn, fill out all the fields, add 500+ random people in your field. Once you have done all this, you get ranked way higher in the algo for recruiters who are searching (you will be granted a visible "All-Star" status, so you will know when you've reached this). After that, go add every recruiter in your field/industry you can find (ideally 500+). Internal recruiters are better than external recruiters / headhunters, but don't neglect the headhunters, especially the "rockstar" ones from more prestigious staffing firms. Finally, add a bunch (500+) of people in your field (who you should now have mutuals with, via the recruiters). Always respond politely to all recruiters even if you're happily employed. Try to be friendly with them, not strictly professional. Build up a rolodex of recruiters. You now have a list of people you can ask for work if you do get laid off. Recruiter-sourced candidates have MUCH better odds of being hired than cold applicants, provided you're not a known name in your industry. If you do this, you'll be able to schedule 40+ interviews in about 3 days, which take place over the following week or two, if you really want to pack them together.

   • Don't neglect contract work completely. Many companies have a surprisingly large hiring pipeline of contract -> FTE, provided you do a good job.

   • How To Win Friends And Influence People by Dale Carnegie.

   • Corporate Confidential by Cynthia Shapiro, if you're in an enterprise / corporate environment.

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3. stuckinhellJul 2022
   You aren't stupid.

   Companies love to promote the idea that work is a second family. It isn't, it's a cut throat place, where even "work friends/family" would throw you under the bus for a promotion or a raise.

   You should always keep a distance from coworkers. They could report you to HR for anything even after hours.

   Highly recommend reading "Corporate Confidential"

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4. GrumpyYoungManJul 2021
   Personally I'd start with Corporate Confidential by Susan Dephillips. Skip the first chapter but pay attention to the rest. You aren't in academia anymore and this will give you some hints as to what's expected of you as your career progresses.

   (As an aside, people here will suggest the other Corporate Confidential by Cynthia Shapiro but I do not recommend it. It does contain some nuggets of valid and useful information but a lot of it is presented in an excessively cynical and lurid way designed to appeal to the conspiracy theorist, something there's no shortage of on HN, or aren't applicable to the software profession. For example, Secret 29 "Your Values Are On Your Desk" particularly made me roll my eyes; nobody gives a hoot what's on your desk unless it's growing mold and the "...many internal promotions fail within the first year and are either fired or demoted..." also elicited a snort. Unless you're unlucky enough to be starting your career in a particularly toxic work environment, people are not going to be out to get you to that degree.)

   If you haven't read DeMarco and Lister's Peopleware, that would also be an excellent choice.

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5. caseysoftwareMar 2021
   Check out the book Corporate Confidential from Cynthia Shapiro.

   It details a ton of DO's and DON'Ts about career growth, development, and struggles. It was a great read but stung in a few places where I realized my own mistakes. Odds are, you'll have a few of the same.

   And to be clear, it details how to make yourself valuable in productive ways that benefit your team, department and company vs just being a pain in the ass.

   Affiliate link if you're interested: https://amzn.to/2MdwZm9

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6. fslothJun 2020
   "Corporate Confidential" by Cynthia Shapiro is an excellent book in explaining the various motivations stakeholders at a large company may or may not have.

   Although the book can be considered bleak, the point is not to train you to suspect your employer, but rather point out various possibilities of politics and power play that may be going on under the surface that are not so obvious from the get go. I.e. it's a survival manual of sorts to a new and sometimes semi-hostile environment.

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