3 ms·

I wonder if we need an entire generation of middle managers to retire before the workplace catches up to the remote working tools and methods that have been aro

I wonder if we need an entire generation of middle managers to retire before the workplace catches up to the remote working tools and methods that have been around for a decade now.

ActionHank 3y ago
They are looking to leverage labour into a weaker position. It's not generational, it's institutional. Some companies acknowledge, support, and empower those who generate the value and fully embrace the servant leadership ideals, most do not. The biggest impact AI will have is empowering those in leadership positions to further extend their leverage against labour to drive down compensation and working conditions. I believe that this will create a vacuum for smaller, more agile organisations empowered by the likes of AI and employees who are motivated and appreciated to emerge and dominate.
- FredPret 3y ago
  I agree. The free market should consign the tie-wearing corporate performative productivity dinosaurs to history. Only results matter. Nimble startups with ~1 - 10 employees + AI + contracting with other companies can run rings around the average 100-person corporate team.
- gcatalfamo 3y ago
  Servant leaders die very fast when your own reports undermine your efforts at being one. A bad boss doesn't undermine it, bad reports yes. It would be an otherwise ideal way of working.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
toomuchtodo 3y ago
Yes. Progress occurs one funeral at a time, because mental models are rigid and folks in power would rather not give up power. https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/three-things-to-know-about-the-workplace-generation-gap/ https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/three-things-to-know-abo... > A survey of 5,458 Americans that Bentley University recently conducted with Gallup shows that your own employees’ answers — their attitudes and expectations — might vary widely depending on the generational cohort. > Everyone wants a four-day workweek. The survey asked what actions employers could take to increase employees’ well-being. The No. 1 answer was to offer a four-day 40-hour workweek in place of a five-day 40-hour workweek. Overall, 77% of respondents said this would improve their well-being. But among younger workers ages 18 to 29, a whopping 82% favored a shorter workweek. > That finding was presented to a group of 25 CEOs, none of whom saw a four-day workweek as viable. However, some companies that have participated in experiments with four-day 32-hour workweeks have seen good results for well-being and productivity and have made the change permanent. Older executives might not see employee wellness quite the same way as younger employees — and leaders who figure out how to successfully manage in ways that better support well-being might have a recruitment edge. Like remote work, even in the face of data, the 4 week workweek is considered "unviable." But it eventually will be as those in positions of leadership and power retire or age out. Make change where you can, otherwise, hold fast.
htrp 3y ago
Well, vote with your wallets. Buy remote (some ppl on HN are in purchasing/leadership positions now). If proper remote first companies can out-execute in-office companies and show better revenue performance, doesn't matter what middle management says. In Dell's case, a company that doesn't need expensive office space and HCOL employees should be able to provide cheaper office equipment than Dell as well.

I wonder if we need an entire generation of middle managers to retire before the workplace catches up to the remote working tools and methods that have been around for a decade now.

ActionHank 3y ago

They are looking to leverage labour into a weaker position. It's not generational, it's institutional. Some companies acknowledge, support, and empower those who generate the value and fully embrace the servant leadership ideals, most do not. The biggest impact AI will have is empowering those in leadership positions to further extend their leverage against labour to drive down compensation and working conditions. I believe that this will create a vacuum for smaller, more agile organisations empowered by the likes of AI and employees who are motivated and appreciated to emerge and dominate.

FredPret 3y ago
I agree. The free market should consign the tie-wearing corporate performative productivity dinosaurs to history. Only results matter. Nimble startups with ~1 - 10 employees + AI + contracting with other companies can run rings around the average 100-person corporate team.
gcatalfamo 3y ago
Servant leaders die very fast when your own reports undermine your efforts at being one. A bad boss doesn't undermine it, bad reports yes. It would be an otherwise ideal way of working.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

toomuchtodo 3y ago

Yes. Progress occurs one funeral at a time, because mental models are rigid and folks in power would rather not give up power. https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/three-things-to-know-about-the-workplace-generation-gap/ https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/three-things-to-know-abo... > A survey of 5,458 Americans that Bentley University recently conducted with Gallup shows that your own employees’ answers — their attitudes and expectations — might vary widely depending on the generational cohort. > Everyone wants a four-day workweek. The survey asked what actions employers could take to increase employees’ well-being. The No. 1 answer was to offer a four-day 40-hour workweek in place of a five-day 40-hour workweek. Overall, 77% of respondents said this would improve their well-being. But among younger workers ages 18 to 29, a whopping 82% favored a shorter workweek. > That finding was presented to a group of 25 CEOs, none of whom saw a four-day workweek as viable. However, some companies that have participated in experiments with four-day 32-hour workweeks have seen good results for well-being and productivity and have made the change permanent. Older executives might not see employee wellness quite the same way as younger employees — and leaders who figure out how to successfully manage in ways that better support well-being might have a recruitment edge. Like remote work, even in the face of data, the 4 week workweek is considered "unviable." But it eventually will be as those in positions of leadership and power retire or age out. Make change where you can, otherwise, hold fast.

htrp 3y ago

Well, vote with your wallets. Buy remote (some ppl on HN are in purchasing/leadership positions now). If proper remote first companies can out-execute in-office companies and show better revenue performance, doesn't matter what middle management says. In Dell's case, a company that doesn't need expensive office space and HCOL employees should be able to provide cheaper office equipment than Dell as well.