Startups aren&#x27;t Dilbert land. They literally can&#x27;t afford it. They have their own pathologies, of course, but they aren&#x27;t Dilbert pathologies. (And due to scale, if you are motivated, they are often, but not always, more amenable to fixing.)<p>You can also look around for medium-sized places where software is the primary product; they can typically afford <i>some</i> Dilbertiness, but not too much, or they get eaten by somebody else. Depends on your tolerance, and on your ability to carve your own defensible niche out.<p>But either way, the key is certainly to start looking. No, working in Dilbert is not inevitable, but you&#x27;ll have to take positive action if you are stuck there now.