Job-Killing Decisions by Techies: What Not To Do 

  • 03/23/2011

The past year saw its share of high-profile bad tech decisions that resulted in the offenders being fired -- or, ahem, moving on "to pursue other career opportunities," as they say.

Take, for example:

  • Mark Papermaster, who exited Apple after the infamous iPhone antenna problem.
  • Robbie Bach, who "retired" from Microsoft at age 48 after notoriously poor performance of products under his watch, like Zune and Windows Mobile (many media outlets surmised there were also other factors in play concerning this decision).
  • A.J., fired by Apple after showing world-famous Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak in line for an iPad shortly before its launch.

But this is a development-oriented site, so we were curious about what mistakes might cause programmers to get fired. We found that you don't often see software developers being canned in these widely publicized cases. That's one good thing about being a coder: They usually fly under the radar, and don't attract a lot of attention for getting fired for bad decisions or writing bad code. In fact, some people claim programmers hardly ever get fired for poor performance.

So what does it take to get you fired if you're a developer? Some pretty bizarre stuff, it turns out. Read on to learn about some strange gaffes last year that got developers escorted to the exit after that fun meeting with the HR rep. Think of this list as a public service, providing you with career advice about what not to do.

Creep on Teens
David Barksdale was a site reliability engineer at Google when he was fired last July after it was discovered he had been accessing users' accounts to find personal information. According to reports, he snooped through one 15-year-old boy's Google Voice call logs to find out the name of the kid's girlfriend and then threatened to call her.

He also supposedly used his position at Google to access other personal information such as chat transcripts, e-mails and contact information. When one teen blocked Barksdale from the kid's buddy list, it was reported that he used the system to unblock himself. Google acknowledged it and "dismissed David Barksdale for breaking Google's strict internal privacy policies."

There was no apparent sexual aspect to the interactions with minors, and no legal repercussions were reported.

Keep Inappropriate Photos On Your Computer (Especially Photos of a Judge)
This tawdry, bizarre story is yet more proof that truth is sometimes stranger than fiction. A computer programmer at Great-West Life Assurance Co. claimed he was fired because of a file folder on his computer that included nude images of a judge. Apparently these photos were evidence for a civil case the programmer filed against his lawyer, who allegedly pressured the programmer to have inappropriate relations with the lawyer's wife, who was a Manitoba judge and subject of the photos… Or something like that. It's too complicated and weird to explain here, but you can read it about it yourself at CBC.

Tell the Media About Salary/Bonus Info at Google
Last fall, Google CEO Eric Schmidt distributed an internal memo announcing an upcoming 10 percent salary increase and holiday bonus for all employees. Business Insider published the "Confidential: Internal Only" memo, which had a heartfelt conclusion of, "Thank you for all that you do, and for making Google a place where magic happens."

Well, maybe "all that you do" was a poor wording choice. The company reportedly thanked the employee who leaked the memo just hours later by terminating his employment, according to CNN. That unlucky employee was identified by Gawker as Randy Wigginton, a programming legend working as a site reliability engineer at Google. Before his career with Google, he was one of the first employees at Apple.

Talk to the Media About Your Hobby
A Morgan Stanley software developer named Solomon Lederer was fired last fall after -- coincidence? -- being profiled by the Wall Street Journal for his hobby of trying to form a kind of offline social network among fellow commuters in the New York City subway system. He would reportedly verbally address the commuters with the idea "that we can do some kind of exchange, or networking, on the subway so that we can get more of what we want and possibly give more of what we can give," according to the WSJ Metropolis blog. He would then hand out flyers about his initiative "to make our commute more interesting and productive."

That very blog later reported that Lederer was fired by Morgan Stanley less than a week after the posting. The company denied that he was fired for talking to a reporter, but Lederer told the WSJ that shortly after the posting he was told by a company director that he "exhibited poor judgment" and was fired days later.

Going back in time, you can find more strange reasons for developers being fired:

There are plenty more stories out there, but now it's your turn. Do you have any good anecdotes about programmers being fired? Please share by commenting below or e-mail me.

About the Author

David Ramel is an editor and writer for 1105 Media.

Reader Comments:

Sat, Nov 5, 2011 orlando

I've been fired this week, and the main grounds were my low productivity compared to other programmers. Personally I think I simply did not fit in the team. Too many captains for one ship, very vague requirements/milestones to reach, amongst other things. I'm almost sure I wont' be the last leaving that project.

Mon, May 30, 2011

You could be forced to leave just because what you get is same with your manager, either you accept demotion with pay cut 15% or provide one week notice.

Wed, Apr 27, 2011 A. Nonny Mouse PA

After working for three and a half years as a contractor for a particular manager, I was let go and blamed for one of his horrendous decisions that I had, in fact, warned him about. He laid off a contractor about every four months to cover his *ss. In another case, I was called into my manager's office at start-of-day on a Monday and told that he had hired two H-1b temps from India who would work so cheaply that they both made less than I did. He then asked me to stay for the day and train them! I was out the door in 15 minutes. I have been terminated without warning when projects were suddenly cancelled (along with the other consultants on the project), and was once let go, like Alex above, because a new manager did not like contractors and didn't trust them to "stay the course" (I have been on projects where few or none of the employees who started were there at the end, but all the contractors were - we were already where we wanted to be in our careers and weren't job-hopping for better salaries). Today, both contractors and employee developers are considered fungible resources by HR, like light bulbs. They think that you can get rid of one 100 watt bulb and any other 100-watter can fill the space - or worse, two cheaper 50-watt bulbs can produce the same light. Personality conflicts, especially in the larger corporations with programmer-hostile IT cultures, often lead to decisions not to renew at the end of a contractual period or to an early exit. Many IT program managers and above were never developers and never understood that programmers are NOT your average corporate employee, and must be provided a different environment or the best will steadily migrate out the door until the only ones left are the less secure or less talented.

Thu, Mar 31, 2011 Hawaiiancoder Honolulu, HI

I was fired 3 times in my lifetime, and once I left because I was told by my boss my life would be miserable if I stayed. It was a sure thing since he would be providing the misery. First time I was working in a supermarket. They said I didn't hustle enough or smile enough. I was a bag boy, aka Convenience Clerk. Second time, I was addicted to this new thing called BBS chat. I was hooking up and going on dates with some of the most oddball people of society, and would hop on to the BBS at every waking opportunity rather than doing my Karaoke DJ work. In that case, I think although my boss told me I was let go because I was goofing off, I think the real reason is I talked back to him when he accused me of changing the thermostat. I said, "I didn't!" with attitude. The third time I should have known better. I was working as a contractor in a web development position. My predecessor was living high off the hog, and when it came to training me, he said it was such a dream job, all he did was play EverQuest online whenever he wasn't answering the phone or emails. He even set his email client to set off a chime to alert him when new email arrived. I followed in his footsteps and was fired. I think the root of my demise was telling my supervisor on site that I was bored and wanted things to do. They only heard the bored part and fired me.

Wed, Mar 30, 2011 Paul nevada

I got fired for letting it slip I had met an extra-terrestrial. Don't talk about that stuff. Bosses can't handle news that heavy.

Tue, Mar 29, 2011 Jim Starr Los Angeles

I'm a contracting consultant, proficient in a handful of software development technologies. I get fired every 3-6 months, depending on schedule, politics and budget of the client. It's really not a big deal, but I guess that some of you who have never had to fund a programming project don't understand where the money comes from... When you don't fit the mission ten days in a row, it's really time to move on.

Mon, Mar 28, 2011 SC

I had one group using the software I wrote for them and another testing their own new system, when my boss decided that the underlying framework had to be reworked. I never got a coherent explanation about that, and I had only a few weeks left on my contract anyways. I finally had to outright refuse his increasingly bizarre demands, and sure enough, the day came when my services were no longer required.

Mon, Mar 28, 2011 BrainiacV

I was fired after I had created and staffed an IT department for a mail-order firm. I had gotten procedures in place so that if I wanted to take a day off, the department could function in my absence. The owner decided to make use of that to reduce the cost of the department by eliminating me.

Fri, Mar 25, 2011 David Ramel

One reader e-mailed me that an easy way to lose your programmer job "is to pass your 40th birthday." A harsh statement, but one I fear could be too true in many instances. Any experiences out there with that scenario?

Thu, Mar 24, 2011 Albo Dubai

I was forced to find a new job because of the tension between me and the new hired friend of my CEO. This man I don't understand that he's really so friendly while talking infront of you but at your back he's discrediting you to the maximum extent that he can do to your boss. Because one reason that I'm thinking, this is the best way of showing that I'm a great treat for his new position. Just imagine even he trying to change the engineering standards that we we're using for years. He inventing his own engineering terminologies and experimenting the flow of works in our department! I'm the Design Manager in charged for this department. That's why I prefer to leave than lost my credibility there. Then after a year I heard that they have kicked this man out from the company. Most of the time friendship is so dangerous when mixing with business.

Thu, Mar 24, 2011 dantheman

And sadly, it is now more common to be fired than laid off. Its cheaper to fire someone. This problem is widespread in all professions... I know several who have been fired for reasons other than misconduct or performance, and still can get UI benefits...

Thu, Mar 24, 2011 Alex

I've been fired a number of times, and (honestly) never for lack of performance - but because of budget, politics, change of managers (like last time when the new manager decided that she cannot work with consultants - only with permanents, and all consultants have been asked to leave in less than two weeks after she was "raised to power"), and so on. Therefore - what does it take ? Well, mostly luck, or rather lack thereof.

Thu, Mar 24, 2011 dantheman

I was fired after working 10 years as a developer because I refused to sign a new non-compete agreement they had cooked up. This agreement said something to the effect that I could not work in their industry for 2 years post termination, or if I decided to quit. Totally unfair... I reused, they fired me. Their loss... I have another job, they have called 5-6 times for help on issues and I have refused them anything... If you treat people like dirt, don't expect them to stay...

Wed, Mar 23, 2011 Banana

You can get fired just because the CEO doesn't like you :)

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