Is there anything developers won't do for a pizza?

http://advice.cio.com/pizza

4 4 19 years ago

advice.cio.com

llimllib2• 19 years ago

My girlfriend is a doctor, and I can confirm that doctors will do just about anything for free food. Mainly this means sitting through a 2-hour spiel about new drug X.

Although sometimes the food is better, oftentimes I'd much rather have decent pizza than the mass-produced crap they serve.

(And she's a No Free Luncher, so we don't do these anymore, and she doesn't eat the free food in the hospital that everyone else does. Somehow, everyone is the one that isn't affected by the advertising.

Maybe Microsoft should start sending reps around to software shops with free lunch? I bet it'd be an effective strategy.)

estherschindler• 19 years ago

Microsoft already sponsors a lot of user group meetings -- with plenty of free food. Largely pizza.

I briefly wrote for a magazine for professional conference organizers. (Think: the people who run MacWorld or TechEd.) I was told that, despite techie's assumption that we run the universe, the profession responsible for most conference bookings is doctors. Seems that every drug company HAS to do a "full disclosure" meeting for every new medicine. Most of those vendors have more money than tech companies do.

But you note that they don't promise pizza. They may deliver bad rubber chicken, but they can promise a full lunch.

llimllib2• 19 years ago

I actually went to one of those "full disclosure" meetings when I used to work for a pharma. They put me up for 2 days in the Vegas Four Seasons in exchange for a 15 minute presentation :)

Rubber chicken indeed, but I'll take free food in exchange for that room any day of the week.

gruseom• 19 years ago

In case you're wondering whether the condescension exuded by this title is for real, check out the first paragraph:

Need more productivity from your software development staff? Need 'em to put in more hours to get a project done on time? Buy 'em a pizza and hand out t-shirts. It's an age-old and effective method to get programmers and techies to willingly (sometimes enthusiastically) give up a weekend. But why do they come so cheap?

What a great summary of everything that's wrong with this moribund, soulless industry.

Is there anything developers won't do for a pizza?

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