We’ve got a new buzz-phrase! Market-based culture.
It means that as an employee, your value today matters more than the years you’ve already put in. It’s performance over loyalty, with rewards for high return-on-investment work and quick reassignments when a role stops making sense.
In theory, it’s about agility and innovation. In practice, it can tip into fear and instability if leaders aren’t careful. AT&T’s latest return-to-office memo (below) is a case study in how not to roll it out. The message may have been necessary, but the tone landed as “us versus you,” and that’s a quick way to lose people before you’ve even made your point.
AT&T’s Full-Time RTO Policy and Stance on Workplace Loyalty Stuns Employees
Hit us up next time.
OpenAI Unveils GPT-5, Its Latest and Most Powerful Model, After Two-Year Wait
It’s supposed tp be like talking with doctorate-level expert in any topic…not our experience.
Overhyped, Underwhelming: GPT-5’s Missed Moment
We’ve entered an era where every major software release arrives wrapped in superlatives and staged fanfare.
AI is creating new billionaires at a record pace
“The artificial intelligence boom is quickly becoming the largest wealth creation spree in recent history.”
Workplace violence is on the rise in the US
“One in three employees surveyed said they’d witnessed physical altercations in the workplace in the past five years”
Why So Many Women Are Quitting the Workforce
As flexibility disappears, so do women in the workplace.
Inside the glamorous world of the media executive who stole more than $270,000
CDC shooter blamed COVID vaccine for depression
‘World’s Ugliest Dog’ Contest Crowns New Winner
Meteorite that ripped through Georgia homeowner's roof is 20 million years older than Earth
Human connection to nature has declined 60% in 200 years
NICH Playlist: Nostalgic Jouissance
Culture Edit Podcast:
Ep. 102 – The Art of William Kentridge, Billy Joel, and Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans
This one-on-one finds Nikki and Chad in the studio after being stranded in New York for a long weekend. They contemplate how to articulate one-zero-two, that everyone loves DJ, and do a deep dive into the art of William Kentridge, the Frick Collection, and how to avoid long gallery lines. Nikki reveals what she thinks about on long runs - Billy Joel and being thankful. On a related note, they review the Joel documentary, the Tour de Femme, and the USATF championships, where 16-year-olds are breaking world records. Lastly, they take on the Sidney Sweeney Has Great Jeans controversy, how it’s part of a new divisive brand strategy, whether it could apply to cycling brands (yes = Lance), and how David’s protein bars are not violating anti-trust through frozen cod.