Product Zine Weekly #4
Hello everyone,
After a substantial break, I've decided to revive my weekly newsletters, starting with a brief note focusing primarily on hiring trends.
Many people I know are currently job hunting in Europe. If you've read Lenny's two recent posts on hiring statistics, you might think the situation is favorable. However, it's important to note that his data likely doesn't cover the European market.
The reality is that Europe is struggling. As I mentioned in my recent post about ProductCamp in Berlin, the recession is evident here. Many professionals I know are considering switching to alternative jobs or side hustles just to keep up with their living expenses.
The sentiment in Europe is markedly different from what Lenny's posts suggest, and I anticipate even more significant impacts in the near future.
For reference, here are links to Lenny's original posts:
However, some of his observations were spot-on.
Remote work opportunities are gradually declining. Finding a truly remote job these days is becoming increasingly challenging, as we're experiencing an employer's market. I don't foresee this situation improving anytime soon. Unfortunately, the pandemic seems to have taught us little, and management is reverting to outdated beliefs about inactive workers, missed collaboration opportunities, and the elusive 'office vibe' that supposedly encourages employees to work longer hours for the same pay.
The number of hybrid and on-site job offerings is on the rise, and some of you bear responsibility for this trend. I'm unsure why people are accepting these less flexible arrangements, with all the wasted commute time and other drawbacks, but your choices affect us all.
Frankly, your acceptance of these conditions costs us all money. More importantly, it costs us ambition and the many opportunities life has to offer beyond the confines of an office. Shame on you all.
Another noteworthy event over the past two weeks was the WordPress controversy.
Matt Mullenweg, co-founder of WordPress and CEO of Automattic, accused WP Engine of misleadingly using the "WP" brand, potentially confusing users into thinking WP Engine is officially associated with WordPress. The issue escalated when Mullenweg raised concerns about WP Engine's failure to adhere to trademark guidelines and its lack of contributions to the WordPress Foundation, despite generating significant revenue from WordPress-based services.
Mullenweg also criticized WP Engine for disabling key features like revision history to cut costs, arguing that this compromises user data integrity. He went as far as describing WP Engine as a "cancer" to the WordPress ecosystem, claiming their practices are detrimental to both users and developers.
WordPress.org blocked WP Engine's servers from accessing essential resources, including plugin and theme updates. This action has left many WP Engine customers unable to maintain their websites securely, raising concerns about potential vulnerabilities.
Given that WordPress powers more than 40% of websites, this conflict will likely impact many of us in the coming weeks.
Personally, I support Mullenweg in this case, even though there might be a conflict of interest.
After all, they created WordPress, and regardless of public opinion, they should have a say in its usage.
WordPress links (different takes):