By Occam’s Razor: the people in charge of the day-to-day running of things at most companies are simply not very bright. I’ll get downvoted for this, because “attitude problem” or whatever, but I’ve been around 30 years y’all. There aren’t many explanations that fit the data.
You are absolutely correct. I am not expected to assemble my desk or the wiring for my workspace either. That’s because people understand that this isn’t part of my job.
Yup! My first day on the last job (also a startup) started with me getting a desk with no power socket nearby. So I had to buy an extension cord (on the company's expense ofc) and run it across the open space.
I'm irrationally fond of this memory, too. It just felt right to improvise and overcome small problems, all day every day. Early stage startups are fun.