Amazon Offer — Talking to Confluent...
——> UPDATE: Tl;dr: I took the Amazon offer. See the update section below. ——> OP I have an Amazon offer, so I’m on the 7 day clock. I’m talking to Confluent today. IF Confluent beats the Amazon offer, what the hell should I do? Also, to all the Conlfuent folks—how does equity work at Confluent? Amazon AWS Base 145k Cash Sign-On: Y1 35k, Y2 30k Stock: 22 shares TC: 185k This is a non-tech (Technical Writer) virtual role. The team I met with is awesome, they have a great vibe, very talented group. I’m a “fan” of AWS, awesome product/brand/technology. Amazon is truly preeminent—full stop. Current TC: 115k (In the midwest) YOE: 10+ Also, what (in your opinion-comment below) would Confluent have to offer (base and equity) to beat the Amazon offer? I don’t want to possibly miss out on the “next” Snowflake. I’m also intrigued by working at a place with less than 2,000 people, more room for job growth vs. a place like Amazon. Sigh, just trying to figure this out man, lol. Us tech writers don’t often have these types of “problems,” so I really need the collective wisdom of Blind, lol. I’m in the catbird seat no matter what, but still looking for some help/insight in a making a decison. ——> UPDATE: The Confluent folks were cool. They seem to be switching gears in technical writing, training, and enablement, so they are in the process of building a "Confluent University" from scratch. They want a "one-man-band" person. I've done that, not really wanting to do that again, but I was eager to learn more. The discussions with Confluent went well until they asked if I had any other "irons in the fire" or offers. I mentioned my Amazon offer. They were like, "Oh wow, that's wonderful—well, you won't be interested in this role..." They went on-and-on for about five minutes about how impressive it was to get an offer from Amazon, lol. I was stunned. So—I never even GOT beyond that point, that was it. Once I mentioned I had an Amazon offer, it was like they bowed down, bowed out quick-fast-and-in-a-hurry, lol. I feel like I dodged a bullet; I know that some of the Confluent trainers who got laid off went to Amazon—that speaks volumes. Side Note Thoughts: That (Confluent University) is good in terms of IPO. My guess is they will go public within the next 9 to16 months. I worked at another place that went public in the 2010s, and I remember them beefing up their enablement "University" training about 10 months before they went public. I think Confluent has a great product, but to let your Trainers/SMEs go—that is so shortsighted. Software engineering is vital, but don't sleep on training, enablement, and support. Building a great tool is wonderful—but can you hang on to your customers? Can you make your customers "feel" like they can USE your tools? Can your customer actually USE your tools? People like me go a long way in solving the Retention Rate problem. It would be BEST to have some Trainers, Technical Writers, Curriculum Developers, and Instructional Designers to deal with Retention Rate, aka downgrades, and churn. So, who knows, maybe I'll hit another Decacorn up in a few years. Time will tell. Now I have to break the news to my current boss—she will not be happy. Onward and upward! FAANG bitxhes! ——> #amazon #ipo #confluent #startup #fang #offer #tech #deloitte
Take the Amazon offer as it's better than your current TC. In fact, your base is higher than mine and I'm L5 SWE at Google.
Adding to this, the original post gives enough definition about the posters subjective view that this appears to be the right answer. He vibes with the cool team, is a fan of Amazon, feels they are preeminent — full stop... seems clear to me.
@xOKQ63 - Are you serious? As an L5 at Google, is your base not even 150k ? That’s really weird.
Talk to confluent, get the offer and then compare. IPO chances are high and don't regret later on missing out. You shouldn't compare us with snowflake or rather anyone with snowflake but we are growing at similar pace. Can't guarantee but I do see atleast 2x to 3x in TC if you join now. WLB can be challenging at present but I like the learning and opportunity
Woah I didn't know technical writing offers were so good, what level is this role?
L5 IC role.
Lord help me, a technical writer makes more than me...
I’m a greedy technical writer. Greed works. 😂
It’s what I get for getting comfortable and thinking only the elite make decent salaries.
Agreed with many other views here. It seems like no brainer with the way you explained how working with amazon is going to be for you. I’m sure you’ll have no regrets if you go with your gut on Amazon!
Blind after snowflake: offer this offer that 2mm here 4mm there hi fives everywhere. Also Blind: take Amazon over a high growth pre ipo cloud company
Amazon
Dont go Amazon, chances are you're not going to enjoy it there.
What do you do as tech writer op? Can you share some of your daily responsibilities.
I take all types of content (agile docs, interviews, Zoom meeting videos, old courses, JAD/JAR docs, outdated courses, etc) and update them, optimize them, sometimes make them shorter, and always make them deliverable online. I specialize in building blended learning (classroom and online) deliverables (documents, videos, motion graphics, illustrations, etc.). I use Word, photoshop, PowerPoint, SnagIt, Articulate, Captivate, some After Effects, TTS, voice fonts, Descript, etc. I’ve used RoR to parse 1000s of agile Word docs, so some light WebDev stuff occasionally to generate content. Technical Writers also do employee training, onboarding, etc. Technical Writers actually do a lot of work. Writing is the key tool, but only about 40% of what I do is actual writing. The writing is the fun part. But I also like doing the graphics. Motion graphics are fun, but SO time consuming.
Thanks for replying. I always thought tech writer and administrative assistant perform same responsibilities.
Offer details, level, yoe?
Updated.