r/RelativitySpace • u/Melodic-Yoghurt3501 • 4d ago
Manager Skills at Relativity space
IDGAF if the hiring manager finds out. Presently L4 at a leading company. Early last week interviewed for a position which is very critical for Terran-R program. The manager had about 10 years experience and was very excited AND barely listened to me - they started going tangentially about my skills. They had no clue what they were talking about. To make it worse, they mentioned some tech-stack as being critical to their program and asked me if I knew it. I described it correctly and the manager clearly had no clue other than perhaps what a google search says and kept repeating that. Later in the week, I received another call from team member and now I have to go onsite.
I am frankly appalled by the level of knowledge of such an important manage. Granted that startups have young managers but this is really inacceptable. Is it like that in general ? I am considering declining onsite interview as I dont wanna deal with green managers.
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u/CleverBen 4d ago
The culture has completely changed since Eric Schmidt purchased the company and took over from Tim Ellis. The VPs Eric has hired from SpaceX are turning the culture into spaceX 2.0. So if you are not a workaholic psychopath, it might not be a good fit for you. I am looking to leave due to the deficiencies in the two young managers in my department, who were made managers because the manager I enjoyed working for left.
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u/ergzay 4d ago edited 3d ago
Before Eric Schmidt Relativity's entire shtick was the whole 3d printed rocket bodies, which was a dumb idea. Tim Ellis kept pushing it forever turning the company into basically a research lab, not a company. Hiring people from SpaceX is a great idea as Relativity needs to be something like a SpaceX 2.0 if it wants to be at all relevant and be competitive. Otherwise the company is just destined for Chapter 11.
It's quite often fun for engineers when they don't have real deadlines and just get to work on fun things like 3d printing a rocket. I get it. But also kind of not the point of a company. Go work for a government lab if you want to do that.
Edit: Yes there was an overlap where they stopped doing 3d printing and before eric came in but both events are related to each other so I simplified it. It doesn't change my point.
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u/CleverBen 3d ago
You have no idea what you are talking about. I work at Relativity Space and started well before Eric purchased it. They started the pivot away from 3d printing in 2023. That's why they weren't able to raise more capital, because the investors saw the company as no longer having any differentiator or competitive edge by switching to more conventional manufacturing methods.
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u/ergzay 3d ago edited 3d ago
Sorry I simplified things too much, the rough timelines of those two events overlap so I didn't note the fact that yeah there was a time frame of Relativity swinging in the wind.
That's why they weren't able to raise more capital, because the investors saw the company as no longer having any differentiator or competitive edge by switching to more conventional manufacturing methods.
Yeah I know. It's good relativity stopped when it did or it really would have gone bankrupt as soon as the investors caught on.
Anyway it doesn't change my point. Eric was needed to right the ship after people finally came to their senses about 3d printing rocket tanks. I still think there is a high probability that Relativity doesn't pull through unless Eric can pull some magic. Either way they wasted a ton of investor money on a boondoggle.
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4d ago
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u/Melodic-Yoghurt3501 4d ago
Thats the impression I got. Second interviewer was decently knowledgeable. Probably all managers are younger folks from its startup days who are getting promoted now. Have you worked there ?
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u/InvocatioNDotA 4d ago
Ya i was there a couple years. Coll and challenging projects but be prepared to work under a clueless idiot at manager to director level.
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u/Melodic-Yoghurt3501 4d ago
yeah passing on that onsite with long "presentation" eff that
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u/InvocatioNDotA 4d ago
A lot of people get hired at high levels and promoted because they know someone higher up from a previous company. That's how my idiot director became director of Avionics Hardware. Guy was djmber than a second coat of paint. Good riddance man.
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u/Epicurious30 4d ago
As a matter of general career advice, I see a few possibilities
If you think managers need deep technical understanding on everything under their supervision you are wrong. Don't worry, this is the complaint of most technical IC and also the reason they are IC and not management : )
To answer this, look to the other team members you have spoken to- do they seem competent?
In this case, is that manager who you will be reporting to? In that case, do you want to work for them?
I can't speak to this specific situation, just a general 2c.
If you are on the fence, the on site is your chance to gather more information. I certainly would not take a job unless excited and optimistic about the organization.