As a former co-worker of yours, still at one of the large organizations you metioned above, my advice to you is to be patient. Change happens slowly, especially in large organizations, but change does happen. There's a lot to be said for doing quality work over a long period of time. Once you earn the trust and respect of your co-workers and superiors, you will be able to shape programming policy.

What I have discovered since you resigned is that by being respectful to my teammates and working hard to become the best programmer I can be, things have begun to change for the better.

You and I both know you have excellent programming ability. But your abililties will be wasted if you cannot have the patience to be a river shaping a valley rather than a flash flood.

--Dave