What Aussie startup founders think of Elon Musk's 'hardcore' approach to Twitter and staff

The weeks following Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter have been tumultuous for its employees. While the jokes and feature backflips from the Meme Lord are entertaining to watch, the reality for staffers goes beyond firing off popcorn.gif tweets as the chaos unfolds.

The past month has seen layoffs around the world, as well as demands for ‘hardcore’ commitment from remaining employees, many of whom don’t have the luxury of quitting for financial or visa status reasons. Still, mass resignation has also been a key feature of Twitter 2.0.

As we reported earlier this week, Musk’s most recent treatment of the remaining Twitter staff at HQ is reminiscent of a startup, but without benefits such as equity.

As we talked to more founders and business leaders, we discovered that they had some strong and interesting perspectives on how Musk is handling Twitter, particularly its people.

Felicia Coco, co-founder and director of LaunchLink

“Musk has reportedly fired dozens of Twitter staff for criticising his approach, which is a massive red flag for me. While we can all appreciate that Musk is intelligent and has a solid track record, that doesn’t mean others’ perspectives are not valid or that he always knows what’s best.

“As a leader, you absolutely need to have a solid vision for your company, but when it becomes tunnel vision, that’s a problem, especially when you’re building products for the masses.

“Nobody wants to work in an environment where they don’t feel heard or that their work doesn’t matter. It’s in your best interest as a leader to actively seek (and sometimes really push for) criticism from employees, and it’s something we actively encourage in our own organisation, regardless of experience, role or tenure.

“Staff aren’t there to boost your ego, they should challenge you. Excellence is not born in a yes-man echo chamber and neither people nor ideas thrive under a dictatorship. When an intern can feel confident enough to say “maybe we should do this a different way” I think you’re onto something really special.

“It’s probably safe to assume Tesla’s glassdoor page will be a window into the future of Twitter’s culture.”

Kate Kendall, founder of Atto Accelerator and founding director of Indie Labs

“I think in order to celebrate different styles of startup work cultures, we need diversity. The trend that there is only one way to run a successful company has resulted in a monoculture of everyone in tech offering the same perks, supporting the same causes and parties, and thinking the same way.

“The beauty of different sporting clubs is that you can pick the one that best represents you — the same goes for startup cultures.

“I’ve been working in startups for 15 years and have seen to all. From working 24/7 and sleeping on mattresses on the floor at team retreats, to having no benefits and going months without pay plus having my work status tied multiple times to immigrant visas.

“While I welcome the maturity of the industry, I do think startups require robust employees. If we position every employee as a victim, we may struggle to see them grow and make decisions that best serve them.

“Would I run the Twitter turnaround the same way? No! As a lover of remote work with two young children, I do think there is a way to drive excellence and growth from a place of calm stability.

“But do I judge Elon for his path? Not right now. I offer grace the same way I would to any fellow founder building in public and hope he figures it out to see Twitter thrive in the best possible way with the least amount of damage to those around him.”

Hareta McMullin, founder and CEO of Third Space

“The situation at Twitter is playing out as a live example of how not to complete an acquisition. Elon Musk is out of touch with the realities of managing a workforce and has seriously miscalculated the reaction of Twitter employees, customers and users.

“Musk’s approach does not inspire hope or loyalty, and the fact that entire teams have resigned (after making 50% of the company redundant) is telling. How he has treated his people is unacceptable. He has displayed a lack of respect, empathy and business leadership.

“With system breakdowns, feature failures and advertisers pulling the pin, the situation is a clear example that your employee experience directly impacts your customer experience, and therefore your bottom line.

“Twitter’s consumer brand, employer brand and company culture are in tatters. It will be difficult to attract and retain people who have seen the past month as an example of what life is like under his (questionable) leadership.

“From the outside looking in, the entire employee experience feels cold, impersonal, and embarrassing.”

Luke Fossett, director of GoCardless ANZ

“In any business, startup, scale up — even in established enterprises.

“If you can get this right, you can make magic happen. Based on what’s public, that’s sadly not what is being achieved at Twitter under Elon Musk.

“I don’t envy the position Elon is in at Twitter — and maybe the organisation did need a shake-up, but as a leader, I’d go about things differently to achieve that change and inspire momentum.

“At GoCardless, we’ve worked a lot on finding purpose for every individual at every level of the company. The result is the ability to link demand for higher performance from the individual to both the ‘what’ and the ‘why’.

“If you can get to know the people and inspire more from them with an individual result, the impact will be a greater output, higher engagement, and little to no churn.”

Brodie Haupt, co-founder and CEO of WLTH

“After acquiring Twitter, Elon Musk has called for increased dedication from his new employees. While this is a typical request from an eager employer, it came with an atypical form through an ultimatum to commit to working in an “extremely hardcore” fashion or leave.

“Though Elon Musk may have viable reasons, like cutting huge expenses of salaries and employee benefits, I believe his approach will have an overall negative effect on the company.

“They have probably lost a lot of talented workers with priceless contributions to the company who value their work-life balance and flexibility. Those who have chosen to stay may experience a decrease in morale as the work culture takes a massive shift to what might have attracted them to the company in the first place. Additionally, many of these employees may simply feel pressured to stay in the company to comply with working visa requirements.

“In the startup space, we do not want to emulate this type of culture. Twitter may squeeze a bit more productivity from the employees they were able to retain but at heavy costs. We want to promote a healthy and happy environment to attract top talent and retain them for longer periods.”

Dan Ratner, founder of Uberbrand

“It seems that Twitter has quickly gone from a brand-led organisation to an expression of a single person’s worldview. The irony is that ‘Twitter 2.0’ is meant to celebrate free speech, but instead it feels like the 20th century all over again.

“Perhaps what we’re seeing is that a stratospheric rise in the billionaire club comes with a stratospheric rise in being out of touch with the world. Elon may very well have a vision for the future, but there are different ways to achieve it – especially when you have $60 billion to spend.

“A personal worldview is by definition personal. When it’s not shared with others then it’s even harder to gather momentum and get people behind you. The news coming out of Twitter HQ about the treatment of staff shows that there is a massive disconnect between what employee’s originally bought into and what they have suddenly found themselves affected by.

“There is no doubt that we’re now living in a world where people want to feel a greater sense of purpose in their lives. The great resignation is proof of that. When you consider this cultural shift, it’s easy to see why so many employees chose to opt-out of the autocracy that Twitter 2.0 seems to be.”

Vincent Nair, CEO of SMARTECH

“Business performance — whether it be profitable or loss-making — is a direct result of the organisation’s culture. Unfortunately, with the exception of three profitable years, Twitter has had a solid track record of making financial losses since its inception in 2012.

“No one disagrees that Twitter has to make a profit. Like any shareholder, Elon Musk is simply trying to ensure that he sees a return on the investment he made. However, whilst I wholeheartedly agree with the need to turn a loss-making company into a profitable one, I disagree with how it is being carried out.

“I faced a similar situation with SMARTECH in the first 2.5 years. I had to get the culture right. I had to rapidly rebuild new business practices, including goals and purpose, as well as establish new beliefs, create new rituals, and authenticate core values as the heart of our culture.

“In a hyper-competitive industry, I also had to identify which employees had the hunger needed for the job and those who were aligned with the new shareholder and customer beliefs. The transformation of SMARTECH from old to new took over three years but the foundations were set for long-term yield.

“Rather than create a pathway for organisational change, it seems that Elon Musk is attempting to transform the company overnight. The unfortunate reality is that by doing this, he is throwing out the toys with the pram. Toxicity prevents accountability, hinders employee performance, and creates brand damage at a breakneck pace.

“What Elon Musk needs to consider is a 24-month turnaround instead. While Twitter still has the name recognition and esteem to attract new talent, he should focus on creating an organisational culture that can save what seems to be a financially disintegrating business.

“Unfortunately for a person like Elon Musk, who dabbles in businesses associated with space technology and energy efficiency, Twitter will either break him or make him the hero financial markets have been searching for in recent years.”

Mat Frankin, managing director of MF & Associates

“Trust in people and brands have a lot in common. Amy Cuddy talks about the one question we all ask when we meet someone, consciously or subconsciously, is can I trust you?

“Social movements and platforms and any business that is about people can’t separate itself from that truth. Musk is a bully that has insulated himself from any real-world consequences for his actions.

“That disconnect has meant he is treating his staff in a way that creates norms that no ordinary member of society or Twitter user would tolerate. It might not be immediate (but it’ll be faster than I thought when the sale discussion started) but I can’t see how Twitter doesn’t go to zero.

“It has no fundamental tech that isn’t replicable. It was hanging on as a last-gen platform because it had a degree of credibility and trust. Now that it is gone, it doesn’t have the reputational buffer to ride this out.

“Users will find other services and will fragment. It might not be good for the world to not have the purported market square — but lionizing the abuse of workers by the next generation of robber barons is worse. You are how you treat people in life and in business. I hope this is a warning to other leaders tempted to couch personal interest in ‘work hard, play hard’ culture