Shemeska
Adventurer
Presumably not, which probably means a much larger use of them for 4e books and DDI articles moving forward.
WotC Layoffs - Rob Heinsoo, Logan Bonner, and Chris Sims
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Presumably not, which probably means a much larger use of them for 4e books and DDI articles moving forward.
Looking at what was released during the 3.5E era, a lot of stuff was done by Ari Marmell, Rob Schwalb, Keith Baker, Nicolas Logue, James Jacobs, Jason Bulmahn, Erik Mona, Ed Greenwood, Wolfgang Baur, etc ... who all appeared to be freelancers for WotC during the 3.5E era (if I'm not mistaken).
It wouldn't be too surprising if the same thing happened moving forward.
Shemeska
Adventurer
True, though I didn't really notice the big use of freelancers till the point in 3.5 that 4e was in development. So same result, different reasons moving forward most likely.
Hairfoot
First Post
"Moving forward" is precisely the type of corporate-ese I imagine Hasbro employees are used to.
Interesting point.
Examining Rob Heinsoo's output from 2005 to 2008, there's not many WotC titles which have his name credited on the front cover. Wonder how much of his time and effort was dedicated to designing 4E over those years.
You do realize Hasbro is a publically held company right?
Buy shares in Hasbro and you can ask these questions yourselves but keep in mind that as a publiclly traded company, Hasbro is legally forced to maximize profits.
Again, I don't think it's that easy for Hasbro to simply change its budget cycle. Companies like Hasbro given their size are in fact more unable to change when their budget cycle starts fresh since they are so tied to other aspects of the company.
Hairfoot
First Post
Well, I'm making a moral argument about job security for artists, so in that respect the profit imperative is loathsome, but it applies equally to other corporations, not just Hasbro.
WotC employees are shed in a scheduled process that applies to all of Hasbro's subdivisions, but it would be nice to think of D&D's publisher as a business that invests in and retains talent, rather than a lean, budget-obsessed supplement mill dedicated to squeezing the most work out of as few employees as possible.
WotC employees are shed in a scheduled process that applies to all of Hasbro's subdivisions, but it would be nice to think of D&D's publisher as a business that invests in and retains talent, rather than a lean, budget-obsessed supplement mill dedicated to squeezing the most work out of as few employees as possible.
CharlesRyan
Adventurer
Hi, all--
I think I can speak with some authority on WotC's nearly annual layoff cycle. In addition to being a victim of it, I survived several rounds in which better people than I were let go.
I can probably be forgiven for feeling that WotC's attitude toward their employees is somewhat cavalier. As Darrin points out, the company does not exhibit a strong sense of loyalty to its employees. That's hard on people who are shown the door--and it's hard on those who are left behind, with heavier workloads and worries over when their time will come.
But I'm also going to second Logan's points: While you are there, WotC is an incredible place to work. The people are terrific, the environment is very pleasant, and the company is good to those within its walls. For every story about layoffs, there's a story about a companywide Nerf war day. Despite the unhappy end to my tenure, should life ever lead me that way again I'd be happy to consider working at WotC again.
I'll add one more thing: At least up through my redundancy (and I hope for the sake of the recently let go that it remains the case), WotC had a very generous severance policy. Losing your job sucks. Losing it before the holidays sucks. But knowing you're financially sound for at least a few months, and getting some help in the job-search process, does take a bit of the edge off. That's no more than a barely-silver lining, I know, but it might take the edge of the apparent heartlessness of holiday layoffs.
(And about the timing: WotC's budgeting process is based on the calendar year. Payroll is based on budget. Naturally, the budget for a given year is finalized toward the conclusion of the previous year. Once finalized, any changes to payroll (in other words, staffing) need to be implemented. The timing is nothing more (or less) sinister than that.)
My heart goes out to those who were let go--those we know and those we don't. Rob in particular is a good friend, though they're all great people. Best of luck, guys.
I think I can speak with some authority on WotC's nearly annual layoff cycle. In addition to being a victim of it, I survived several rounds in which better people than I were let go.
I can probably be forgiven for feeling that WotC's attitude toward their employees is somewhat cavalier. As Darrin points out, the company does not exhibit a strong sense of loyalty to its employees. That's hard on people who are shown the door--and it's hard on those who are left behind, with heavier workloads and worries over when their time will come.
But I'm also going to second Logan's points: While you are there, WotC is an incredible place to work. The people are terrific, the environment is very pleasant, and the company is good to those within its walls. For every story about layoffs, there's a story about a companywide Nerf war day. Despite the unhappy end to my tenure, should life ever lead me that way again I'd be happy to consider working at WotC again.
I'll add one more thing: At least up through my redundancy (and I hope for the sake of the recently let go that it remains the case), WotC had a very generous severance policy. Losing your job sucks. Losing it before the holidays sucks. But knowing you're financially sound for at least a few months, and getting some help in the job-search process, does take a bit of the edge off. That's no more than a barely-silver lining, I know, but it might take the edge of the apparent heartlessness of holiday layoffs.
(And about the timing: WotC's budgeting process is based on the calendar year. Payroll is based on budget. Naturally, the budget for a given year is finalized toward the conclusion of the previous year. Once finalized, any changes to payroll (in other words, staffing) need to be implemented. The timing is nothing more (or less) sinister than that.)
My heart goes out to those who were let go--those we know and those we don't. Rob in particular is a good friend, though they're all great people. Best of luck, guys.
It is interesting to watch WotC. As far as I am concerned, regular yearly layoffs of employees is one of the worst things a company can do.
Yes, layoffs happen, but they are usually sporadic, not an annual cycle that a company goes through enless your business is tied to some natural cycle like construction or similiar and you live in the northeast for instance.
I don't consisder WotC business to have that cycle.
Yes, layoffs happen, but they are usually sporadic, not an annual cycle that a company goes through enless your business is tied to some natural cycle like construction or similiar and you live in the northeast for instance.
I don't consisder WotC business to have that cycle.
vagabundo
Adventurer
I agree, I think it is a poor business model and one that they should work to eliminate. Keeping quality staff should be one of the priorities of any business.
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