[buggy6257]

Honestly if I was interviewing, even if you told me the future and this was the outcome of hiring the guy, I still wouldn't hire him.

It's clear he's brilliant, and experienced, and seems like he's just refusing to "play the game". Speaking truth to power works if you know when to also NOT do it, or how to do it in a way that gets people to listen.

It doesn't really matter how brilliant a guy is; if he's not capable of "playing the game", then he's going to be (and WAS) out on his ass within a short timespan. That's a sink on my team's resources having to hire AGAIN and train AGAIN so short after his hiring. I don't want brilliant jerks, I'd rather have someone decent who can stick around by not getting himself fired for saying the wrong thing to the wrong person.

[almostdeadguy]

Being kind and knowing how to deliver disagreement in a constructive way is important. Human beings aren’t perfect logical subjects immune from emotion (thankfully). Hopefully a good manager can take steps to address this or help mediate conversations where such a person might struggle. But places where “playing the game” (like withholding valid concerns with a decision) is a criteria for success are not long for this world

[ajmurmann]

One danger I see with brilliant jerks is that they can also lead to others not sharing their legitimate concerns. If someone who is usually right calls you stupid frequently when you speak up or just make a suggestion you'll eventually stop making suggestions. Psychological safety is core to teams self-correcting. Of course you could also only hire people with very aggressive communication styles. I've seen this work but it obviously Congress with its own downsides.

[ajmurmann]

I feel similarly. However, not because I'd be worried about speaking truth to power but how they might treat peers and people more junior/with less power than them. Maybe they in fact treat less powerful people better and mostly punch up but while that exists it seems unlikely. Brilliant jerks can be incredibly effective but they can also destroy your entire team and now when they leave you are screwed.