Note to Self: Keep an Eye Out for What Didn’t Happen, Too.

I watched some talking heads at a conference recently and it occurred to me: A funny thing happened on the way to “the future” where ‘bots and technology were supposed to replace well-trained people:

They didn’t.

Across our economy, companies are seeking to fill 11 million jobs today.

Read the headlines, and most customer complaints stem from a lack of “staffing” in almost every sector.

All those prognosticators who said their apps and chatbots could handle the work of managers or salespeople or technicians or teachers or pilots or clerks or whomever - It didn’t really happen.

We all hate the automated phone tree more than ever.

If only someone would just answer the phone!

I read a recent report about the “top” ten companies in real estate - just one sector of our economy. They did nearly 1.2 million transactions last year - nearly 1 in 6. Correction: their PEOPLE did that work. Yes, with the help of their tech. But without a doubt, not the other way around. In fact, the companies that were closest to “tech entirely” - who would buy and sell your home by algorithm alone - did a tiny fraction of the whole business. Oh, and LOST a couple BILLION dollars along the way…

So keep your eye on why DOESN’T happen as much as what does. If it’s true that there’s some special advantage to stock market money and algorithmic advances, it’s hard to see it. You could parse the investments and returns, but a simpler answer is to ask yourself:

If their tech is the answer, why are they spending so much time and money RECRUITING?

Maybe it turns out that the future

Is still built around that old phrase:
Give the people what they want:
People!

#alwaysinspiring