A Message from Our CEO – April 2023

Dear Friends,

I learned a new word today, “gwarosa”. It is Korean for “death by overwork”, and scores of people quite literally died from working too hard in the last few years. Last week South Korea’s government announced a raise on it cap of working hours to 69 per week, which is exactly the wrong thing to do. Gen Z  is livid and rallying hard against the policy. Meanwhile in France, Boomers are initiating violent riots on pension reform. The whole world seems agitated with government policy, and angry about working conditions.

In the US, people are quietly quitting, unions are rising, and four-day work weeks are gaining traction. As recession seems more likely this summer or later this year, company leaders will need to make hard choices in an urgent environment. I firmly believe that one of the reasons we got here is because of bad leadership. More specifically, leaders are not prioritizing talent development. Middle managers are getting crushed with administrative work and individual contributor work, and not able to work on strategy-focused work and talent development. As a result, employees become disengaged, aggrieved, stressed, etc. A zillion studies show that great managers stay close to the emotional health of their team, instill trust, provide autonomy, and set clear goals.

Sounds simple, and no gwarosa.

Help Wanted: Great Leaders.

Warren