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The BARF

The BARF

Auteur(s): WRKdefined
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 Breaking news, Acquisitions, Research, and Funding is The BARF. A look back into last week’s most talked about news in the world of work, what’s happened, what does it mean, and why should you care. Analysis that you can understand without a Ph.D. Proudly brought to you by WRKdefined with hosts William Tincup and Ryan Leary.All rights reserved by WRKdefined Politique
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  • Burnout, compliance pressure, and the communication breakdown reshaping modern work

    Burnout, compliance pressure, and the communication breakdown reshaping modern work
    Dec 19 2025
    Work feels louder, faster, and less predictable than it did even a few years ago. AI is accelerating change, job security feels fragile, and the way people communicate is shifting in real time. Leaders are expected to adapt instantly while still holding culture, trust, and performance together. In this episode, the conversation moves from mindset and social dynamics to AI compliance, productivity tradeoffs, and the burnout hitting senior-level women hardest. The throughline is clear. Technology keeps moving forward, but leadership, policy, and mental health are being stress-tested every step of the way. What We Cover Why positivity is less about vibes and more about discipline How social behavior and communication norms are changing AI compliance and why regulation always trails reality The illusion of job security in modern organizations Social media’s impact on communication skills Burnout and stalled advancement for senior women Key Takeaways Job security is no longer something organizations can promise. Roles evolve constantly as automation, efficiency, and market pressure collide. Stability now comes from adaptability, not tenure. AI is increasing productivity while quietly eliminating jobs. Companies celebrate speed and output but struggle to talk honestly about the human cost. Compliance frameworks are trying to catch up. Communication skills are eroding as tools replace presence. Feedback, networking, and relationship-building require intentional effort or they disappear. Muscle memory matters. Senior-level women are carrying disproportionate pressure. Leadership expectations, political tension around DEI, and limited advancement paths are fueling burnout at the top. Chapters 00:00 Manifesting Positivity in Daily Life 02:50 Navigating Social Interactions at the Bar 05:59 The Impact of AI Regulations on WorkTech 08:51 The Future of AI Compliance 11:45 Debating Social Media Restrictions for Youth 14:38 Adapting to New Communication Norms 17:04 Building Muscle Memory in Feedback and Networking 19:57 The Impact of AI on Job Security and Productivity 24:53 Women in the Workforce: Burnout and Career Advancement 31:50 The Political Landscape of DEI and Women’s Leadership Hosts William Tincup LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup/ Ryan Leary LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary/ Connect with Us Site: http://www.wrkdefined.com TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/WRKdefined Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined/ Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/WRKdefined Substack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    37 min
  • The BARF: Emotional Labor, AI, and the Cracks in Work Nobody Wants to Own

    The BARF: Emotional Labor, AI, and the Cracks in Work Nobody Wants to Own
    Dec 12 2025
    Modern work is asking more from people than it ever has, and almost none of it is being acknowledged. Beyond skills and output, workers are expected to absorb stress, regulate emotions, manage uncertainty, and stay productive through constant change. This emotional labor has become a silent requirement, baked into jobs without recognition, protection, or compensation. At the same time, organizations are introducing AI into some of the most sensitive parts of work: feedback, performance reviews, scheduling, and support. The promise is efficiency. The reality is exposure. These tools don’t fix broken systems. They surface where accountability is weak, where expectations are unclear, and where trust has already started to erode. What looks like isolated issues - a strike over scheduling, frustration with performance reviews, employees turning to AI for reassurance - are actually connected signals. They point to a growing gap between what work demands emotionally and what companies are willing or able to own. AI is not creating that gap. It’s accelerating it. In this episode, we share our analysis on emotional labor at work, why AI is quietly stepping into human gaps, and what recent labor actions like the Starbucks strike reveal about control, predictability, and trust. We unpack where organizations are underestimating the emotional cost of modern work and why governance, not technology, is becoming the real leadership challenge. Key Takeaways Emotional labor is no longer the exception. It is the baseline. Work now expects people to manage stress, emotions, and ambiguity as part of the job, yet most organizations still treat this effort as invisible. That gap is one of the biggest drivers of burnout and disengagement, even in roles that appear stable on the surface. AI is being used as emotional support because management systems are stretched thin. When employees turn to technology for clarity or reassurance, it usually signals that feedback loops are broken or leaders are overloaded. AI fills the space, but it also exposes who actually owns the human experience at work. Performance reviews become fragile the moment AI influences outcomes. Algorithms do not remove bias or responsibility. They shift it. Without clear ownership and governance, trust in performance systems collapses quickly and employees stop believing the process is fair. Scheduling is not an operational detail. It is power. The Starbucks strike made clear that unpredictability creates financial stress, emotional strain, and resentment, especially for hourly workers. Predictability is not a perk. It is dignity. Technology does not change culture. It reveals it. Healthy organizations use AI as leverage. Fragile ones feel it as pressure. Ignoring emotional labor and accountability only makes the fallout faster and louder. Chapters 00:00 Emotional labor hiding in plain sight 03:12 How job expectations quietly expanded 06:18 AI as emotional backup 10:42 Where accountability slips 15:07 Performance reviews and trust 19:58 Bias, credibility, and governance 24:36 Scheduling as control 27:02 Starbucks as an early warning 33:11 What leaders are underestimating right now Connect with us William Tincup LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup/ Ryan Leary LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary/ Connect with WRKdefined on your favorite social network Site: http://www.wrkdefined.com TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefined Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined/ Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/WRKdefined Substack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    48 min
  • BARF: Bezos, BrightHire, and Why Surveillance Keeps Creeping Into Work

    BARF: Bezos, BrightHire, and Why Surveillance Keeps Creeping Into Work
    Dec 8 2025
    This episode digs into the strange collision of leadership, ambition, and surveillance tech shaping the workplace. Bezos jumps back into the trenches with a new AI startup, Ring slides deeper into facial recognition without real consent, and Zoom buys BrightHire to tighten its grip on the hiring process. All three signals point to the same tension: power, data, and the fading boundary between home and work. We talk about leadership longevity, interview intelligence, privacy erosion, and how Big Tech continues to redefine the rules without asking. Bezos raises questions about retirement and ego, Ring raises questions about tracking and bias, and Zoom raises questions about who controls the hiring stack in a remote world. Key takeaways Bezos returning to a new operating role changes the retirement conversation. It pushes leadership into a space where age becomes secondary to energy, curiosity, and impact. Companies are watching this closely because it reframes late-career value and challenges the idea that stepping back is the default for seasoned executives. It also shows how founders think about reinvention long after they’ve “won.” Ring’s “familiar faces” feature shows how fast consumer surveillance creeps into the workplace. Storing faceprints without consent and partnering with law enforcement opens the door to tracking people across entire neighborhoods. Bias issues for dark-skinned women and sign-language users are already documented. Once technology like this exists, companies inevitably find ways to apply it to hiring, security, attendance, or productivity. Wearables and cognitive-tracking tools raise a new question: when does optimization turn into control? These devices can help workers understand their energy patterns, but they also create a blueprint for employers to push performance expectations further. The line between support and surveillance gets thin fast. Workers want tools that help them improve, not tools that watch for dips in output. Zoom’s acquisition of BrightHire is a major shift in how interviews will run. BrightHire brings structure, coaching, and high-quality transcription into a platform recruiters already live on. If Zoom blends this with its existing footprint, hiring becomes faster and more consistent across teams. It also places Zoom in the conversation as a real player in the hiring workflow, not just a meeting tool. The future hiring stack is consolidating around communication platforms. When interviews, transcripts, guidance, and analysis live in the same place where teams already meet, the entire hiring motion changes. Recruiters get cleaner insights, candidates get a more consistent experience, and platforms get the power to shape the rules. Whoever controls that layer controls the hiring story. Timestamps 00:00 Trash talk - Dallas Sucks but the Birds aren't great either 05:10 Bezos and Project Prometheus 10:20 Retirement myths, ageism, and work-forever mindsets 13:45 Ring’s “familiar faces” and the surveillance creep 20:30 Smart wearables, cognitive tracking, and workday optimization 24:10 Money dynamics at home and how they show up at work 28:20 Zoom acquires BrightHire 34:55 Where this acquisition could lead Connect with usWilliam Tincup LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup/Ryan Leary LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary/ Connect with WRKdefinedSite: http://www.wrkdefined.comTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefinedLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefinedFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined/Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/WRKdefinedSubstack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    39 min
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