Who gets to keep their job?

The AI Effect isn't about which jobs AI replace – It's about which people.

I’m not buying the popular "AI Effect" narrative about AI replacing certain job functions – AI will affect every department, even the C-suite.

It’s not which types of jobs AI will replace – it's about which types of people.

That’s because these cuts aren’t just about saving money, they're about cutting bureaucracy to free up A-players to move fast and do their best work.

The Real Corporate Disease

I once earned PayPal an extra $300M by getting five bugs fixed in a boarding flow. The fixes took an engineer one day – but getting that engineer took me nine months of political wrangling.

In my last years there, I spent 10% of my time solving problems and 90% playing politics to get obvious solutions implemented – and that’s why I left.

Good people won’t waste their time with that shit. And AI gives us the chance to cut through that bureaucracy. Companies who don’t seize that chance will be left behind.

The CEO Perspective

Imagine you're the CEO looking at your org chart.

Who are you keeping?

→ The employee who brings you problems, or the one who brings solutions?

→ The one you need to micromanage, or the one who makes you better?

→ The one who executes your ideas, or the one who has better ideas than you?

→ The one who learns fast or the one who gets defensive?

→ The one who builds systems, or the one who burns bridges?

There’s an expression – “Headaches have two legs and a salary.”

In fact, Netflix asks managers: "If this person gave their notice today, would you fight to keep them?”

Be honest. Every manager with 5+ direct reports has someone they would not fight to keep.

How can you be a person AI can't replace?

Now, imagine you’re the employee – Would your boss fight to keep you? What kind of people would they fight to keep?

What do you bring to your job that can’t be done by AI? Relationships? Emotional intelligence? Taste in craft? Inspired creativity? Loyalty and respect from others? Spend some time with those questions.

We can’t control the advance of AI, but we can control which version of ourselves shows up every day.

The AI effect will force leaders to make hard decisions, but the decisions are not about AI. They’re about what kind of people you want on your team.

This post might make you uncomfortable. It made me uncomfortable to write. But sometimes the most helpful thing I can do is say the things that others won't.

Helpful? Read past issues and subscribe here.