Be Excellent To Each Other

This, allegedly, is a leaked internal document at Valve used to orientate new hires to their unusual management structure. Spoiler: they don't have a management structure. At all.

http://newcdn.flamehaus.com/Valve_Handbook_LowRes.pdf

I want to go to there.

That sounds so amazing. The handbook of the company i work for is the most boring thing ever

I don't know if it did originally leak or what, but Valve linked to it on their facebook page, so it's legit.

Pretty astonishing stuff.

Gabe Newell is generally reckoned to be a really cool dude, so this doesn't surprise me.

Personally speaking I credit Valve (and thus by extension Steam) with not only saving the PC games industry, but reinvigorating it afresh and putting it in the excellent position it is at the moment - so I have the utmost respect for both Valve and Newell.

It's great to see that it looks like Valve is a good employer too.

That looks pretty awesome, assuming it is true. It's how I would like to think I would run my own company if I had one.

My current place is halfway between that and the more traditional structure, but i'm going to show some people that. Even if it isn't real, it should be

Meanwhile, at Valve:


PC Gamer interview this month has confirmed Meet The Pyro is finally coming out. It also says that 'if you have to ask how to get into the games industry, you're probably not ready yet' and that to work at Valve you have to be capable of social interaction, so you can talk to other human beings about your cool ideas for games.

"Everyone is a designer, everyone can question each other's work" is underlined in their handbook.

Almost sounds too good to be true.

Indeed. I think EA wasn't entirely unlike this in its early days (up until the mid 90s). I do fear that without Gabe and friends at the helm (it's inevitable there'll be some kind of change) a suit or two will move in and turn the 'gouge' dial to 11, just like at EA.

Reading their Wikipedia page again I am reminded that Trip Hawkins (idealistic founder and fascinating guy on his own) left in 1991 and that's when the changes started. I think the rot had truly taken hold by about 1996/7 as they began to gobble up famous developers.

Well, right now, Valve are self-owned so there's no-one to put any suits in place. I suspect Gabe would never sell out and IPO the company on the promise of growth -- if he wanted to do that it would have happened already -- so Valve is likely free of courage oversight until at least he dies or retires. After that, it sounds like the corporate culture is very well embedded -- and actively hostile to traditional management -- so anything other than an internally led MBO would be a disaster. I suspect Valve has little to worry about on this score.

I think he should ease back on the pies a bit, the man is not a picture of physical health.

Wasn't there a guy who started at Valve and later that week, resigned, as he had been diagnosed with cancer. Newall asked him what the problem was and got the answer "I don't want to be a drain on the company". Newall told him to shut up, your treatment is paid for, go home until you get better.

That's awesome.

I'm not sure if I'd be able to work in a place like that. I'd like to, but I don't know if I'd be any good.

A colleague makes a good point - who do you talk to if you're unhappy about your current pay? Everyone?

This is discussed in the PDF.

It does sound awesome, and the kind of place I aspire to work at. However I know that i'm a total flake, leave me to make 100% my own decisions, and i'll do fuck all.

Well, sort of. It just says "raise the issue". But who with? Who is there to talk to that can get you re-appraised?

I'd be alright with that, but if I'm honest with myself, I'm fairly sure I'd have issues hiring people better than me.

Don't then.