Here's what I'm reading from the story - Mark Z. has an ambition to grow the company as large as the sky, and those around him didn't have the dedication, drive, or capacity to enact that dream.
How do you deal with people who you start with that just don't have what it takes to grow or move the company forward? How do you deal with people who haven't contributed as much work as you have, who don't take initiative to do work on their own, and who don't 'get/grow the idea' as fast as you do? (some of these are gleaned from the article, some I just ask for myself).
Mark Z's actions, if his coworkers were to fall into these categories, are acceptable, and probably the only way to do it properly. And, considering the majority of his coworkers were college students who just happened to be nearby (not hired or specially picked), it is very likely that they didn't have the capicity or willpower to bring the company along as much as Z. did.
You might be right. On the other hand, the article does paint a picture of a greedy, evil asshole with no respect for other people or for his own word. Who do you know with a business card that says "I'm CEO... bitch."?
There are ways to gracefully push people out, and then there are ways of posturing yourself by forcefully and publicly kicking people out. He obviously does not know how to do the former.
How do you deal with people who you start with that just don't have what it takes to grow or move the company forward? How do you deal with people who haven't contributed as much work as you have, who don't take initiative to do work on their own, and who don't 'get/grow the idea' as fast as you do? (some of these are gleaned from the article, some I just ask for myself).
Mark Z's actions, if his coworkers were to fall into these categories, are acceptable, and probably the only way to do it properly. And, considering the majority of his coworkers were college students who just happened to be nearby (not hired or specially picked), it is very likely that they didn't have the capicity or willpower to bring the company along as much as Z. did.