Impossible deadlines to micromanagement: Ordeals of employees working under Elon Musk

Tesla and Space X boss Elon Musk has time and again been in the spotlight for his management style. Be it having a war of words with an employee on Twitter (now called X) or expressing his views about the work from home trend in an interview, Musk has been the centre of attention many times. Recently, Tesla VP Sreela Venkataratnam left the company after working there for over a decade. She described that working there is not “for the faint of heart.” The former Tesla employee isn’t the only one who has talked about having a hard time working under Musk. In the past, several people have shared their experience of how it was working under the tech mogul. Let us take a look at some of these instances.

1. Sreela Venkataratnam: Not for the faint of heart

Sreela Venkataratnam, a former vice president at Tesla, recently announced her departure after 11 years at the company through a LinkedIn post. Her tenure at Tesla was marked by extraordinary achievements, but she also acknowledged the immense challenges of working under Musk. In the comments section of her post, Venkataratnam described Tesla as a company “not for the faint of heart,” where the pressure to perform was immense.

Despite the difficulties, Venkataratnam expressed pride in what she and her team had accomplished. However, her departure, along with that of several other senior employees, underscores the demanding nature of working at Tesla. Musk’s focus on headcount and cost reduction, coupled with his relentless drive for success, created an environment where only the toughest could thrive.

2. Esther Crawford: Brilliant problem solver who lacks emotional intelligence

Esther Crawford, a former Twitter product manager, had a unique view of Elon Musk’s management style, especially after he took over Twitter. Crawford, who initially joined Twitter through the acquisition of her screen-sharing social app, Squad, experienced firsthand the demanding and unpredictable nature of working under Musk. She described Musk as a brilliant problem-solver but lacking in the social-emotional intelligence necessary for managing a platform like Twitter.

In a post on X in July, she wrote, “Elon has an exceptional talent for tackling hard physics-based problems, but products that facilitate human connection and communication require a different type of social-emotional intelligence.”

Crawford became known for her dedication, famously posting a photo of herself sleeping on the office floor during a critical period. However, despite her efforts, she and her team were let go just a few months later.

After getting fired from the company, she described Musk’s unpredictable personality in another X post and wrote, “His personality and demeanor can turn on a dime going from excited to angry. Since it was hard to read what mood he might be in and what his reaction would be to any given thing, people quickly became afraid of being called into meetings or having to share negative news with him.”

3. Carl Medlock: You don't argue with him

Carl Medlock, a former Tesla territory manager, talked about Musk’s intense and disciplined approach to leadership in an episode of “The Iced Coffee Hour” podcast in August 2022.

Medlock, who joined Tesla during the 2009 recession, quickly learned that Musk expected absolute compliance with his directives. Arguing or challenging Musk’s decisions was not an option, as those who did were swiftly dismissed.

“You don’t argue with him,” Medlock said during the podcast and added, “When Elon stands up at the end of a meeting and says, ‘This is the direction we’re going to go,’ you stand up from your chair and you better head that direction. Because he’s not one for people back-talking — he’ll just let you go.”

Medlock recalled Musk’s intimidating intelligence and the lack of social interaction in the workplace. Despite Musk’s demanding nature, Medlock showed respect for his ability to hire talented people and his commitment to the company’s mission. However, the pressure to align with Musk’s vision, coupled with his micromanagement, created a high-stakes environment where employees constantly feared for their jobs.

4. Jim Cantrell: The two sides of Elon Musk

Jim Cantrell, SpaceX’s first VP of business development, described his time working with Musk as a rollercoaster ride of contrasting experiences. In an interview with Insider's Kiera Fields in November 2022, Cantrell said that he was impressed by Musk's vision for the rocket company but added: "Working with Elon was like working with two different people: the good Elon and the bad Elon, and you never knew which you were going to get."

On one hand, Musk was charming and visionary, drawing people in with his big ideas. On the other hand, he could be vicious and demanding, often leaving employees feeling inadequate.

Cantrell’s tenure at SpaceX was short-lived due to his clashes with Musk, who expected employees to match his relentless drive and work ethic. The intense pressure to perform and the fear of Musk’s wrath made the workplace environment challenging.

5. Tom Mueller: Saying no is not an option

Tom Mueller, a co-founder of SpaceX, spent over 20 years working closely with Musk and witnessed his demanding nature firsthand. His experience has been described in Elon Musk’s biography, which was launched in September last year.

Mueller, in the biography, mentions that he learned that saying “no” to Musk was not an option.

The biography mentioned that Musk was an ‘insane’ boss at SpaceX and would give seemingly impossible deadlines to engineers. And if anyone said that something ‘couldn’t be done’, they were not invited to the next meeting.

Mueller’s strategy, he described, was to agree to Musk’s demands and later explain why something might not be possible if it didn’t work out. This approach allowed him to navigate the intense pressure and tight deadlines that characterised life at SpaceX.

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