Josh, brilliant framing but alongside The Great Decoupling, I'd argue we're living through The Great Dehumanisation.
Yes, AI is real. Yes, the bottom line matters. I've been in this world long enough to know that layoffs and restructures are part of the game. But when did we flip the switch on basic human dignity in the process?
People giving years of loyalty, dismissed with an email and four hours notice. We'd never accept that behaviour in any other area of life, yet in the corporate world we've somehow normalised it.
The strategic failures you highlight are real, but the moral failure runs deeper. It costs nothing to treat someone with dignity on the way out. The examples of how badly this is handled are too many to count.
The Great Decoupling may be 60 years in the making. The Great Dehumanisation is the part we can actually fix, starting today.
Excellent article! And I agree with Jordana. It seems as if many companies haven’t seen people as human beings in a very long time. I, too, believe this will backfire. Gen Z is watching and removing themselves from the madness after seeing their millennial and Gen X parents go through layoffs, burnout, and toxic work environments.
The other (sort of comical) thought I had while reading this is once companies are forced to hire more contract/fractionally, what will they ever do with their beloved RTO policies?
The side-hustle explosion makes more sense through this view too. Many people are not chasing entrepreneurship for excitement anymore. They are building redundancy because institutional stability feels much less dependable.
The world was a far far better place without OpenAI / Anthropic and the shit that is being thrown at us. Technology that was not required but force fitted. Billions of dollars spent for compute to save Millions of dollars on payroll. We will be seeing the downfall of humanity thanks to the greed of the rich
Maybe disconnecting is not as bad as we think. Maybe too much of an emotional connection to our jobs under the narratives of employee engagement has caused mass burnout. Don't be connected at an emotional level but on an intellectual one. Do the job - whatever that means - and go enjoy life!
Josh, brilliant framing but alongside The Great Decoupling, I'd argue we're living through The Great Dehumanisation.
Yes, AI is real. Yes, the bottom line matters. I've been in this world long enough to know that layoffs and restructures are part of the game. But when did we flip the switch on basic human dignity in the process?
People giving years of loyalty, dismissed with an email and four hours notice. We'd never accept that behaviour in any other area of life, yet in the corporate world we've somehow normalised it.
The strategic failures you highlight are real, but the moral failure runs deeper. It costs nothing to treat someone with dignity on the way out. The examples of how badly this is handled are too many to count.
The Great Decoupling may be 60 years in the making. The Great Dehumanisation is the part we can actually fix, starting today.
Excellent article! And I agree with Jordana. It seems as if many companies haven’t seen people as human beings in a very long time. I, too, believe this will backfire. Gen Z is watching and removing themselves from the madness after seeing their millennial and Gen X parents go through layoffs, burnout, and toxic work environments.
The other (sort of comical) thought I had while reading this is once companies are forced to hire more contract/fractionally, what will they ever do with their beloved RTO policies?
The side-hustle explosion makes more sense through this view too. Many people are not chasing entrepreneurship for excitement anymore. They are building redundancy because institutional stability feels much less dependable.
The world was a far far better place without OpenAI / Anthropic and the shit that is being thrown at us. Technology that was not required but force fitted. Billions of dollars spent for compute to save Millions of dollars on payroll. We will be seeing the downfall of humanity thanks to the greed of the rich
Maybe disconnecting is not as bad as we think. Maybe too much of an emotional connection to our jobs under the narratives of employee engagement has caused mass burnout. Don't be connected at an emotional level but on an intellectual one. Do the job - whatever that means - and go enjoy life!