[Mirikon]

Yeah, teh Horizon system of voting people up or down is tres interesting. Since creativity and interpersonal skills/community support are so valuable, you find that the vast majority of the workforce is chipped. That way, you can recompartmentalize as needed, slotting teh right skillsets for whatever position you're filling without a big need for training/retraining. CRunchtime to ship your product for the holidays? Management can drop down to shipping, upload the right skills, and load trucks like ten year loading dock vets. Bigwigs taking a tour tomorrow? Everyone gets janitorial skills and sets to making the place sparkle. Want a team building excercise? Everyone slots up some Athletics programs and goes on a zipline safari. Shaka-brah!

Actually, one of the books says that this is indeed the case in Horizon, where workers are encouraged to get skillwires, and have free access to Horizon's skillsoft database while they're on the clock.

[CanRay]

Actually, one of the books says that this is indeed the case in Horizon, where workers are encouraged to get skillwires, and have free access to Horizon's skillsoft database while they're on the clock.

For more information on how/why this is bad... 

[Wakshaani]

Actually, one of the books says that this is indeed the case in Horizon, where workers are encouraged to get skillwires, and have free access to Horizon's skillsoft database while they're on the clock.

Well yes. I wrote that.

[Angelone]

How much of Horizon's workers are skillwired up? Could be a lot of future addicts out there. I'm curious if the effects of skillwires are known and those that have them are kept in lower position than their nonwired peers.

[Wakshaani]

How much of Horizon's workers are skillwired up? Could be a lot of future addicts out there. I'm curious if the effects of skillwires are known and those that have them are kept in lower position than their nonwired peers.

Fully 90% of Horizon employees have skillwires, with that number broken down as follows:

80% have Skillwires (2)
18% have Skilwires (3, Alpha)
2% have Skillwires (4, Beta)
(SR 4 numbers, SR 5 would be 2, 4, and 5.)

Only high-ranking, named NPCs will be found will Skillwires (5 in SR 4, 6 in SR 5), which would be Beta grade.

The SIngularity system allows them to wirelessly access skillsofts as needed, with in-work use being free and out-of-work use being charged (but at a discount). With SR5 rules, go ahead and add a SKilljack of 4, 5 (Alpha), and 6 (Beta) to the above slots as well. (Horizon doesn't have a Delta-grade faciity. The CEO and board members who are interested have to go to other corps for that.)

Also keep in mind that the Horizon Matrix runs at CalHot levels, which is a stronger, buzzier level than the standard Matrix connection. Horizon employees come down with Matrix addiction more commonly than other corps, but they're pretty much okay with that. The increased Matrix strength was nice for the technomancers (oops) and continues to be a good place for Artificial Intelligences, making for better 'nests' than in other corporations.

[Angelone]

Thanks, that's pretty scary stuff right there. It explains a lot of the cultish vibe I get off of them.

[Wakshaani]

What's scary about being a replacable universal part that can be moved around and plugged into whatever module is needed at the time?

Some people are so paranoid...

[Black]

What's scary about being a replacable universal part that can be moved around and plugged into whatever module is needed at the time?

Some people are so paranoid...

I think it provides career mobility.  Tired of maintaince on the drones and want some artificial sunlight?  Give gardening a try!  Move from job to job, simply plug in new skill soft as required!  Never be made redundant again, simply be retooled and redeployed! Yeah! 

[ImaginalDisc]

IMO, it's extra depersonalizing, Black. A regular company treats you as a particular set of skills. Horizon treat you as hardware for skill software. "You" are totally irrelevant. Your personality isn't even a valuable investment for them.

[Magnaric]

Sure makes it easier to standardize and keep things in the company though. And technically it's win-win, if you think about it from a Corporate point of view.

Horizon gets to move people from department to department as they see fit, as each worker is guaranteed to fit into said position because of the skillwires. Now, obviously the individual employees value their personalities and things that differentiate them from each other, but that's why there's external non-work related activities and Horizon corp matchmaking and such.

Basically every employee becomes like a character in The Sims. They have their own set of skills, that are in this case reprogrammable, but they have a random assortment of traits and flaws and quirks and such. So you line them up in your Human Resources dossier, sort them by interests and hobbies(as well as turn-ons and turn-offs for matchmaking), and then try to place them with people they'll get along and be happy, productive employees with.

So as long as they are okay doing whatever the corp needs them to, the corp can see to it that they are matched with people with similar interests, personalities, music preferences, etc, which in turn keeps them happy to do whatever Horizon needs them to do, etc etc, thus the wheel keeps turning.

Drek, I sound like a Horizon employee. 

[Crunch]

Any information on the effects the Nanotech collapse had on all those skillwired meatdrones?

[Wakshaani]

Any information on the effects the Nanotech collapse had on all those skillwired meatdrones?

Pretty much nothing. Skillwires don't have nanomachines running around and doing stuff in them. When they're first installed, you have nanomachines that help make neural connections and whatnot, but they do their job in a day or two, die, and get flushed out the kidneys by the time you're in outpatient. If something goes wrong, some would be used to make repairs but, same situation.

The Nanopcoalypse screwed up deployment of new people, mind you. "Yeah, go work in, uh. Accounting I guess? No, wait. Marketing. We'll put you in marketing until the tables are open again. I think. Damnit, somebody get this man some 'wires!" They're having to use older, slower methods of installing cyber for now, getting in there manually. Luckily, they have people with Cybertechnology skillsofts for that.

[GiraffeShaman]

Basically every employee becomes like a character in The Sims.

Hahah, I think that's why people found this creepy. Employees being treated like they are characters in the Sims.

[Sendaz]

Especially when the corp made them wear the hats with the glowing green gem on top.

[Lusis]

So this thread got me thinking; what is the state of religion among corp employees?