Should I Always Listen to My Boss?
Tue, Sep 26
Today's lecture is all about the messy situations you might find yourself in once you've settled into your first job. We'll talk about bad bosses, notable ethical lapses at tech companies, and strategies for assertively dealing with problems in the workplace. Everyone would like to avoid conflict on the job, but the reality is that this is common.
We have three main in-class learning goals. By the end of lecture today you will:
- Understand that you have an option to constructively address problems in any role at a company.
- Consider the risks and benefits of "at will" employment.
- Learn about the ways code can be developed and deployed in deceitful ways.
The slides for today's lecture.
Read This:
Elizabeth Anderson explains How bosses are (literally) like dictators in Vox.
Bill Sourour writes about the code he's still ashamed of.
Former Chairman of Lockheed Martin and Undersecretary of the Army Norman R. Augustine reflects on ethics and decision making in engineering.
Carole Cadwalladr interviews Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Christopher Wylie in the Guardian.
Paul Lewis interviews Facebook whistleblower Sandy Parakilas in the Guardian.
These supplemental readings will give you further perspective on difficult people in the workplace and in open source projects:
How to Deal with Deceptive Colleagues at Work
Linus Torvalds Defends His Right to Shame Linux Kernel Developers
Linus Torvalds: 'I'll Never Be Cuddly But I Can Be More Polite'
Why the Open Code of Conduct Isn't for Me
Do This:
Writing Reflection 04
See the instructions posted on the assignment's page.
This writing reflection is due on 10/3 at 5pm.
This Week's Dialogue Group Meeting
Find at least one hour to meet with your group to discuss the prompt of the week: What challenges do you think you will encounter in your early career in tech?
Project 00
Reminder: this project is due Thursday 9/28 at 5pm.
The project for this unit on tech work will be the production of a Podcast that summarizes your group's dialogues over the course of the next several weeks. Review the instructions that have been posted on the Project 00 page.
Please complete the Team Member Evaluation Form and drop it in your Google drive folder that is shared with Ellen before the project deadline.
Reading Quiz 05
The form for Reading Quiz 05 follows below. If you can't see the form below, try this direct link.