Have You Noticed It?

Tech has been Struggling as of Late.

For the First time in Decades, the Top Talent is Fleeing the Industry.

Companies are getting called "Tone-Deaf" for their Ideas.

Tech Leaders seem Unable to get their Teams Aligned.

Mass Layoffs.

Major Strikes and Protests.

Mass Quitting.

Public Active Disengagement.

The list seems to Grow Every Day.

I was thinking a lot about "Why" this seems to be Happening.

What is the Root of this Growing Chaos?

As I've thought about this, I have landed on the Underlying Issue.

Intelligence Versus Wisdom.

Now, these are "Not" the same thing.

Think of it like this...

Intelligence is asking "Can" We Do This?

Wisdom is asking "Should" We Do This?

When it comes to the Tech Industry as a whole, it has Thrived, for decades, on the Question of "Can We Do This?"

There was a Major Challenge in Finding Information on the Internet.

The Tech Industry asked, "Can we make Finding Information Easier?"

Yes!

Thus we ended up with the phrase, "Google It".

There was a Major Challenge of Having Better Meetings With People Across the Globe.

Phones just were not "Cutting It".

The Tech Industry asked, "Can we Connect People Better?"

Yes!

Thus we had Skype and Zoom rise to Popularity.

Whenever there was a Problem, Tech would ask if they "Could" Create a Solution.

Then they set off Doing It.

In Many Ways, the Tech Industry has been Extremely Successful because of their Ability to Design Solutions to the "Can We Do It" Question.

But if you look at the Problems that the Tech Industry appears to be Experiencing Today...

We are beginning to see there is a "Limit" to the "Can We Do It" Mindset.

Let me give you an Example.

There is a Major Problem with Loneliness in Today's World.

The Tech Industry asked, "Can we Create a Tech Solution to Loneliness?"

Their Solution?

Here's Your AI Best Friend!

Then you had the Tone-Deaf Commercials that came out.

A Person Exploring the World, By Themselves, with only their "AI Friend".

A Person in a Room with Other Humans, Actively Ignoring the Real Humans, to "Talk" with their "AI Friend".

The Question that the Tech Industry was "Not" Asking?

"Should" AI be the Solution to Loneliness?

It seems that People Fundamentally Understand that an "AI Friend" would actually "Exacerbate" the Problem of Loneliness.

Or another one of my favorite topics - Burnout.

Due to Burnout, People's Productivity has Dramatically Decreased.

Per the Research on Burnout and Productivity, people can only attain 5% of their Productivity Potential while in Burnout.

The Tech Industry Asked, "Can we Create a Tech Solution to Improve Productivity?"

Indeed they have Created "Solutions".

Amazon's Tech Solutions to Warehouse Worker Productivity has led to Mass Strikes and Protests around the World.

Employees do not really "Enjoy" being Tracked down to the Inch on the Floor and an "Auto Timer" going off when they barely step off route or pause for a few seconds.

I wouldn't either, it sounds like a Dystopian Big Brother Hellscape to me.

"Should" Tech Companies be Tracking Employees to that Miniscule Level of Micromanaging, all at the Determination of Algorithms?

There is also the Wider Business Problem which has to do with the "Profit At All Expenses" Mentality.

"Can" We Increase Profits with Mass Layoffs (and Force the Remaining Workforce to Pick Up the Slack)?

"Can" We Increase Profits by Keeping Wages As Low as Possible, "Even If" it means Employees Are Unable to Afford Their Basic Livelihoods?

"Can" We Increase Profits by Creating Addicting Technology that Negatively Impacts the Health and Wellbeing of Customers?

"Can" We Increase Profits by Forcing Employees to Work to Death (Sometimes Literally)?

The answer to these is, Yes we "Can".

But "Should" We?

Then there is the Reverse of this as well, where companies say "No" to the "Can", when they would likely Benefit from the "Should" Question.

For instance, if we look at the Failed Return-To-Office "Mandates", we see this happening.

Tech Leaders are saying they "Can't" Create the Solution to Improve Remote-Work Experiences.

(More Accurately, they are too Focused on AI "Solutions" they "Can" Create to Care about their Employees' Needs)

A "Huge" Example of this was Amazon's CEO of AWS, Matt Garman, who was talking about Amazon's Rule "Disagree and Commit" in relation to Chime Calls (Amazon's Version of Zoom).

Garman said, "I don't know if you guys have tried to disagree via a Chime call... It's very hard."

"Should" a Tech Company's Tech Solutions be able to, at the "Very" Least, give their own company the Ability to Function as Normal?

I think it is a Very Poor Tech Company that says, "Our Tech Solution is Unable to Do What "We" Need It To Do, But "You" should still Buy It."

But that is "Exactly" what Garman is Saying and Expecting.

It also "Shouldn't" be Hard to Disagree on a Video Call with Today's Functionalities.

On Zoom, you have the Hand Raise Feature (which could Easily become a Large Red X to Disagree), or a Survey Feature to see if people Agree or Disagree.

Simple Features to "Disagree", and that took me 2 Seconds to think of.

I am "Not" a Tech Savvy Individual, but I have some pretty simple Solutions to this Problem.

"Should" Tech Companies be Dedicating All of Their Resources to Creating AI instead of Improving Their Workforce?

As I go down the List of the Problems that Tech is Experiencing today, I Continue to see the Same Problem.

They are saying "Yes" to things they "Can" Create, but Probably "Should Not".

They are saying "No" to things they "Should" Focus On Improving.

Their Intelligence for Tech Creations is High.

But their Wisdom for Needed Solutions is Low.

This is why I recently said that Leaders need to start Understanding "Sageship".

Tech Leaders (as well as Leaders in Most Industries) continually Go Back to Fundamentally Broken Models.

Leaders Must Start Asking the "Should We Be Doing This" Question instead of Ignoring It.

The Leaders who will Create the Future Will Build it through Sageship.

Everyone is Watching the Current Business Models Crumble.

The Patterns Must Be Broken.

The First Leaders to Adapt Will Win.

Why Is The Tech Industry Striking Out So Badly Recently?

The Underlying Problem Tech Leaders Are Facing

What will you write today?