In 2020, Microsoft promised to be at negative carbon emissions as a company in ten years. Instead, they have increased emissions by almost 30% since then. They promise they’ll be there in 2030, but that seems like wishful thinking.
If you were burned out, overworked, and struggling to keep up with the demands of the job, and a tool promised to save you 30 minutes or more to get your work done, you’d figure out how to use it, too.
Of course, most of them are trying to use these tools without training and instruction from the company, so this is risky. One, because you have no idea what they are doing and what results they’re getting. Two, they might become even more burned out trying to teach themselves before they get to the part where it helps them save time.
As the author says, algorithms aren’t working to keep us well informed. RSS can work, but it takes some effort on our part and the availability of an RSS feed from the site we want to follow. An email newsletter shows up.
I might not love email, but I can’t argue with that.
It’s been an issue before, but firms have always been able to work around the edges, limiting the impact those efficiencies had on their overall billable hours. This feels different. The entire point of AI tools is to create significant efficiencies across the business world. Not using them will end many client relationships. They won’t accept that level of inefficiency. On the other hand, a firm investing in AI technology does not get a return on investment if their revenue method is hours worked.