Apple Gestapo: Engineer fired for showing iPad to Woz hours before launch [UPDATED]

[maflynn]

Ok to the folks defending apple and stating he broke the rules, he should have known better. I have one question. What rule did he break by showing the ipad to Woz who is an employee, an owner (stock holder) and co-founder of apple. He was also responsible for the apple I - apple III

I can't see where the nda was breached especially since they were announcing the device that day

 

[jb1280]

Ok to the folks defending apple and stating he broke the rules, he should have known better. I have one question. What rule did he break by showing the ipad to Woz who is an employee, an owner (stock holder) and co-founder of apple. He was also responsible for the apple I - apple III

I can't see where the nda was breached especially since they were announcing the device that day

Do you know what the specifics of the NDA were surrounding the release of the iPad? If you don't, you can't say what was and what was not a breach of the NDA.

The article sheds no light on the specifics that surrounded who could see what version of the iPad when. Without that, all we are left with is a story of someone who showed someone a product that was not supposed to be revealed.

Is it ruthless based on showing a product that has an additional couple features from another? I suppose so. It's not vindictive though and it bears little resemblance to the case of the lost iPhone.

 

[maflynn]

I'm just saying the engineer showed off the ipad the founder/owner/employee the day of the announcement and he got canned. Doesn't seem right

 

[bobob]

What is that message? Live in fear scum? This kind of management "style" belongs firmly in the past. Who, working at a big company like that, would deny the cofounder of the company? Especially so near the launch and for so little time.

All this"obey or else" stuff a lot of people have spouted here makes me puke. Find a back bone and search yourselves for some soul. FFS.

Note to self: Don't hire Henri Gaudier for any security sensitive jobs.

 

[Hmac]

What is that message? Live in fear scum? This kind of management "style" belongs firmly in the past. Who, working at a big company like that, would deny the cofounder of the company? Especially so near the launch and for so little time.

All this"obey or else" stuff a lot of people have spouted here makes me puke. Find a back bone and search yourselves for some soul. FFS.

"Live in fear"? Give me a break. How about "follow the rules or get another job"?

I love people who want to judge a corporate culture they know nothing about. Especially based on an article in Gizmodo. FFS. Danny Glover lives.

 

[*LTD*]

So what's in the iPad NDA?

If the employee didn't follow that, then the results are predictable. I doubt there's a "Steve Wozniak exception clause."

 

[Hmac]

So what's in the iPad NDA?

Apparently there's a clause about showing the thing to ex-employees.

 

[*LTD*]

Wozniak is an Apple employee in name only. He has nothing to do with Apple otherwise. it's an honorary position because out of sentimentality he asked to remain an Apple employee for life. I also doubt there's anything in the NDA allowing the discussion or showing of the iPad to anyone else in the organization outside a specific department or set of departments. I don't think it would be a good idea to go flashing it around to the guy in the Apple mailroom or to the go-fer who got a summer job with the company. Let's get real here.

 

[bobob]

You're hired by company XYZ and the boss tells you that it is critically important that you never let anyone outside your immediate department see the XYZ Procedure Manual - - so important that you have to sign a sworn statement that you won't do so. He makes it clear to you that breaking this policy will result in immediate dismissal. You agree to this condition of employment and sign the statement.

Later, a visiting dignitary who happened to work for XYZ 30 years ago and is viewed by many at XYZ as a legendary hero of the company, asks to have a quick look at the latest version of the XYZ Procedure Manual.


What would you do?
What might be your motivation for doing so?

 

[*LTD*]

Apple employees "live in fear" (LOL), hate their jobs, and have been steadily leaving the company.

Which is why Apple keeps posting record quarters, amassing billions in spare cash, and churning out products that make other players in the industry look like Chinese moped repair shops.

Get a grip, people.

 

[maflynn]

There is no correlation between apples ability to generate income and any sort of hostile or unfriendly work environment. Secondly with the recession people are more likely to put up with more crap from an employer then otherwise.

 

[Henri Gaudier]

Note to self: Don't hire Henri Gaudier for any security sensitive jobs.

True. I am a dirty, sneaky, foreign type! And I lick your wife

As for the sneering at "a culture of fear." That was in direct response to Baron58's comment ".... occasional public lynchings are necessary to make sure the rest of the employees get the message."

Hmac .. you seem to be unwilling to see the ease in which under those specific circumstances an indiscretion could happen. It is minor, shows no signs of corporate espionage or underhandedness and to all intents and purposes Woz is like an owner of the company.

Making money has nothing to do with the internal culture of a company in the sense of worker happiness, security, feeling respected/listened to etc. It has never been about happiness or security ever.

 

[notjustjay]

You're hired by company XYZ and the boss tells you that it is critically important that you never let anyone outside your immediate department see the XYZ Procedure Manual - - so important that you have to sign a sworn statement that you won't do so. He makes it clear to you that breaking this policy will result in immediate dismissal. You agree to this condition of employment and sign the statement.

A good example. People, you need to realize that "working at Apple" is not a homogenous statement, just because you carry an employee badge doesn't mean you are privy to everything -- at ANY company larger than a handful of employees. Apple is a big company with thousands of employees, and each employee has a list of things they can and CANNOT access.

Where do YOU work? If you popped down to HR and asked to see all the employee files and salary reports, would they let you? If you went down to the test labs and asked to give the new prototype a test drive, would they let you? If you're trained as a burger flipper, would they let you take cash for a shift? "But I work here!" isn't an excuse to see everything your company does...

At my company, there are 3 levels of security clearances, you need to have specific access programmed into your badge to let you enter certain labs, and there are dozens of different labs each with teams working on different projects. Certain things are so sensitive that you have to sign into a special locked secure area just to HAVE MEETINGS to DISCUSS them, and you certainly can't leave documents about them lying around. There are shredder boxes on each floor beside the printers to dispose of sensitive documents.

 

[quagmire]

I'm just saying the engineer showed off the ipad the founder/owner/employee the day of the announcement and he got canned. Doesn't seem right

It doesn't matter if he showed it to a fellow employee. Apple keeps its products secret even within the company. Only 7 people knew about the iMac in 1997.

A lot of the employees found out about the iPhone the moment Jobs unveiled it at MWSF back in 2007. Only the people responsible for development of the product in question know about it. The other employees are not allowed to know about it.

The guy broke his NDA by showing it to Woz.

 

[bobob]

What is that message? Live in fear scum? This kind of management "style" belongs firmly in the past. Who, working at a big company like that, would deny the cofounder of the company? Especially so near the launch and for so little time.

All this"obey or else" stuff a lot of people have spouted here makes me puke. Find a back bone and search yourselves for some soul. FFS.

Note to self: Don't hire Henri Gaudier for any security sensitive jobs.

True. I am a dirty, sneaky, foreign type! And I lick your wife

It seems that you have incorrectly inferred a great deal about us from your initial employment interview. I must inform you that these additional comments will be added to your application file, and the chances of you being hired by the head office of Bobob International Group (B.I.G.) in any capacity are becoming increasing small. However, I have taken the initiative to forward your resume to our branch sales department, where your wife licking skill set may be considered a useful customer relations tool. Thank-you again for your interest in B.I.G. and best wishes with your employment search.

 

[GrindedDown]

Just a quick comment on the importance of the NDA to Apple:

Apple has been able to remain at the head of the pack because of proprietary rights and corporate secrecy. They have been setting the pace in the phone industry, MP3 business, high-end laptop industry to an extent, and of course more. They do this because they develop products in secrecy. By the time you hear about it, it is practically in stores. If another company wants to learn from the product, they have to go buy it themselves and study. In a way, they are behind before the race even starts.

 

[GrindedDown]

...asks to have a quick look at the latest version of the XYZ Procedure Manual.


What would you do?
What might be your motivation for doing so?

".........meh...here you go."

 

[bobob]

".........meh...here you go."

 

[GrindedDown]

Oh that is gold...ty bobob

 

[LethalWolfe]

Apple employees "live in fear" (LOL), hate their jobs, and have been steadily leaving the company.

Which is why Apple keeps posting record quarters, amassing billions in spare cash, and churning out products that make other players in the industry look like Chinese moped repair shops.

Get a grip, people.

There is no correlation between apples ability to generate income and any sort of hostile or unfriendly work environment. Secondly with the recession people are more likely to put up with more crap from an employer then otherwise.

Exactly. I would say Hollywood is probably the most abusive industry around yet successful movies and TV shows still get made. James Cameron is infamous for being horrible to work under but he's directed the two highest grossing* movies of all time. As they say in sports, winning solves a lot of problems. People will put up w/a lot of crap if they think it gives them a chance to be a part of something great.


Lethal

*not adjusted for inflation

 

[rhett7660]

There is no correlation between apples ability to generate income and any sort of hostile or unfriendly work environment. Secondly with the recession people are more likely to put up with more crap from an employer then otherwise.

Then how do you answer this if there was no recession and apple still turned a profit and people were still staying employed with Apple? We heard about these type of scenarios before the recession, hell long before Apple made it big. So please explain this to us?

 

[maflynn]

I don't need too since we are in a recession and the job market sux.

 

[rhett7660]

I don't need too since we are in a recession and the job market sux.

This is true, but saying:

people are more likely to put up with more crap from an employer then otherwise.

Doesn't hold any merit since they were doing this long before the JOB MARKET sucked. Because we all know Apple has never ever leaked anything out to find out who the leaker was and the fired this so called leak. Yeah this has never ever happened. Even in a great job market!!! Yeah ok.

 

[*LTD*]

This is true, but saying:



Doesn't hold any merit since they were doing this long before the JOB MARKET sucked. Because we all know Apple has never ever leaked anything out to find out who the leaker was and the fired this so called leak. Yeah this has never ever happened. Even in a great job market!!! Yeah ok.

But wishing really really hard for the opposite must make it right.

 

[gnasher729]

You're hired by company XYZ and the boss tells you that it is critically important that you never let anyone outside your immediate department see the XYZ Procedure Manual - - so important that you have to sign a sworn statement that you won't do so. He makes it clear to you that breaking this policy will result in immediate dismissal. You agree to this condition of employment and sign the statement.

Later, a visiting dignitary who happened to work for XYZ 30 years ago and is viewed by many at XYZ as a legendary hero of the company, asks to have a quick look at the latest version of the XYZ Procedure Manual.


What would you do?
What might be your motivation for doing so?

Very simple. You call your manager who can make that decision. He then has the choice of saying no and looking mean, saying yes and getting fired, or calling his manager. Eventually Steve Jobs gets called, who won't get fired whatever he does.