

Ask HN: How does craigslist run its website with just 30 people? - stevenj

Employee # source: (4th question from the bottom) http://www.craigslist.org/about/factsheet
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drusenko
Doesn't seem incredibly hard to pull off -- we also run a pretty large-scale
network with a small team. Here's some thoughts:

\- They may not be counting support staff/abuse monitoring staff as employees
(they might be contractors). Even if they do, it's possible that 10-15 people
could do the job, depending on their support volume load.

\- Probably very little management overhead. This also increases productivity
across the whole company, as there is a lot less communication overhead. Let's
give them 4 management types, including Craig, Jim, a CFO and an engineering
manager (if that's even necessary).

\- They don't do much feature development, so they might only have a few
engineers. Let's be generous and say 5.

\- Running their network operations probably takes quite a few people, but
with a relatively simple website, it can definitely be done with a small,
efficient team. Let's say 3-5.

\- Let's throw in one office manager/executive administrator, to make
everybody's lives easier.

That totals 30, even with support, but there's still some wiggle room. If
support staff or abuse monitoring staff are contractors, there's more than
enough room to work with.

~~~
elliottcarlson
You forgot the masseuse...

<http://www.linkedin.com/pub/anonor-cauldwell/24/ba1/146>

------
elliottcarlson
They are not a leading innovator when it comes to technology - and they don't
necessarily need to be. According to Newmark, the site is community driven and
will respond to what the community wants - and in the end, what craigslist
currently offers is obviously what they want. [1]

With the right number of engineers and system administrators, there is no need
for a higher overhead when you already have a well oiled machine. Throwing man
power at something doesn't make things more efficient. You just need the right
talent and you can do bigger things with less people. [2]

So the question for you is, why would you expect or need more?

[1] [http://www.quora.com/Craigslist/Why-has-Craigslist-
innovated...](http://www.quora.com/Craigslist/Why-has-Craigslist-innovated-so-
little-with-its-product)

[2] [http://radar.oreilly.com/archives/2006/04/database-war-
stori...](http://radar.oreilly.com/archives/2006/04/database-war-
stories-5-craigsl.html)

~~~
stevenj
>So the question for you is, why would you expect or need more?

I don't think you need more. But why do many other companies have more?

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pkamb
By not making anything new.

