De-systeming your system - a hidden cost of layoffs and what to do about it
Here is a pattern that seems to be common: You have 100 engineers that build a great product. There are great promises of growth, so you hire 100 more engineers. Your 200 engineers build lots of new infrastructure and services and libraries, oh my. Growth doesn't pan out and you lay off 100 engineers. Remaining 100 engineers are left with 200 engineers' worth of infrastructure, services, libraries - oh my. Sadness, strain, and seeking other employment; bewilderment at how everything has slowed to a crawl. You have experienced the outcomes of being 'over-systemed', and the only practical cure is 'de-systeming'. Awkward terms perhaps, but it's not complicated - every piece of software you have incurs decay, and that decay - left unchecked - will amplify risk, inflate COGS (cost of goods sold) and operating costs, and generally produce a huge psychological burden on the remaining employees. So, if you'd like to improve morale post-layoffs, pursue de-system...