Sign-In
Cart
The Severance: How AI is Breaking The Way Competence Is Made
Paperback
Currently unavailable to order
Please enter your email and a message will be sent to you when this product becomes available on our website.
ISBN13: 9798191316116
Publisher: Independently Published
Pages: 228
Weight: 0.68
Height: 0.52 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
Publisher: Independently Published
Pages: 228
Weight: 0.68
Height: 0.52 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
Artificial intelligence is making experienced professionals faster. It is also beginning to remove the work that made them experienced in the first place.
Across software, law, medicine, finance and other skilled professions, AI is taking over work once assigned to beginners: early drafts, analysis, diagnosis, financial models and routine coding. Much of that work was slow, and some of it tedious. Removing it can look like obvious progress.
Across software, law, medicine, finance and other skilled professions, AI is taking over work once assigned to beginners: early drafts, analysis, diagnosis, financial models and routine coding. Much of that work was slow, and some of it tedious. Removing it can look like obvious progress.
Yet this was also where people learned their profession.
A junior did the work, made mistakes and had them corrected by someone who knew more. Then came another piece of work, and another. Over time, something changed in the person doing it. Experience accumulated. Judgment developed. The beginner learned to recognise when an answer that looked perfectly reasonable was wrong.
Most of today's senior professionals learned their craft before generative AI became part of the job. Their experience can conceal the weakness for years because the organisation continues to deliver and the numbers may even improve.
The problem comes later, when those seniors begin to leave and the people behind them are expected to take their place.
If a young lawyer has spent years checking machine-produced drafts rather than learning to build an argument, or a junior engineer has reviewed code without struggling through enough of it himself, time served is no guarantee that competence has been acquired. The same question now reaches medicine, finance and every profession in which judgment is built through repeated work under correction.
The Severance is not a case against artificial intelligence.
The gains are real, and there is no case for keeping work that no longer serves a purpose. The difficulty is identifying the work a junior still needs to do for himself, because without enough of it he may never acquire the judgment the job demands.
Constantine Leo Serafim has spent fifty years watching successive technologies change the workplace. This wave troubles him for a different reason. Earlier technologies removed labour and changed jobs. Generative AI can also remove part of the route by which a beginner becomes someone trusted to carry responsibility.
That leaves institutions facing a decision they have rarely had to make openly: which parts of a junior's work still need to be done by the junior, even when the machine is quicker?
The answer has to come from inside the profession. Experienced practitioners know which early tasks taught them to notice what others missed, where mistakes exposed weak thinking, and when correction began to change how they approached the work. Some of those tasks looked routine at the time. Their value only became clear later, when the habits formed there were being relied upon.
Much of it can now go. The mistake would be to assume that nothing is lost simply because the finished work still looks good. A junior who moved too early into checking machine-produced answers may remain useful and productive. What he may not be getting is enough practice finding his own way through a problem before someone, or something, gives him the answer.
The institution has to decide where a junior must still do the work unaided and who is responsible for correcting it. That choice costs time and may reduce an immediate saving, but it is part of the cost of producing people who can eventually carry the work themselves. Remove too much of that experience, and the organisation may find that the people coming through are not ready for the responsibility waiting for them.
The greater danger may take years to become visible. By then, AI may be better at the work than it is today, while too few people have acquired the experience needed to know when its answer is not enough.
Software can be bought quickly. A trained person cannot.
A junior did the work, made mistakes and had them corrected by someone who knew more. Then came another piece of work, and another. Over time, something changed in the person doing it. Experience accumulated. Judgment developed. The beginner learned to recognise when an answer that looked perfectly reasonable was wrong.
Most of today's senior professionals learned their craft before generative AI became part of the job. Their experience can conceal the weakness for years because the organisation continues to deliver and the numbers may even improve.
The problem comes later, when those seniors begin to leave and the people behind them are expected to take their place.
If a young lawyer has spent years checking machine-produced drafts rather than learning to build an argument, or a junior engineer has reviewed code without struggling through enough of it himself, time served is no guarantee that competence has been acquired. The same question now reaches medicine, finance and every profession in which judgment is built through repeated work under correction.
The Severance is not a case against artificial intelligence.
The gains are real, and there is no case for keeping work that no longer serves a purpose. The difficulty is identifying the work a junior still needs to do for himself, because without enough of it he may never acquire the judgment the job demands.
Constantine Leo Serafim has spent fifty years watching successive technologies change the workplace. This wave troubles him for a different reason. Earlier technologies removed labour and changed jobs. Generative AI can also remove part of the route by which a beginner becomes someone trusted to carry responsibility.
That leaves institutions facing a decision they have rarely had to make openly: which parts of a junior's work still need to be done by the junior, even when the machine is quicker?
The answer has to come from inside the profession. Experienced practitioners know which early tasks taught them to notice what others missed, where mistakes exposed weak thinking, and when correction began to change how they approached the work. Some of those tasks looked routine at the time. Their value only became clear later, when the habits formed there were being relied upon.
Much of it can now go. The mistake would be to assume that nothing is lost simply because the finished work still looks good. A junior who moved too early into checking machine-produced answers may remain useful and productive. What he may not be getting is enough practice finding his own way through a problem before someone, or something, gives him the answer.
The institution has to decide where a junior must still do the work unaided and who is responsible for correcting it. That choice costs time and may reduce an immediate saving, but it is part of the cost of producing people who can eventually carry the work themselves. Remove too much of that experience, and the organisation may find that the people coming through are not ready for the responsibility waiting for them.
The greater danger may take years to become visible. By then, AI may be better at the work than it is today, while too few people have acquired the experience needed to know when its answer is not enough.
Software can be bought quickly. A trained person cannot.
Also from
Serafim, Constantine Leo
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE in Healthcare: A Non-Technical Look at The Future Of Medicine
Serafim, Constantine Leo
Paperback
$14.99
Also in
Management
Crucial Conversations Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High, Second Edition
Grenny, Joseph
Patterson, Kerry
Switzler, Al
Paperback
$11.99
Whale Done!: The Power of Positive Relationships
Tompkins, Chuck
Blanchard, Kenneth
Lacinak, Thad
Hardcover
$23.75
Quiet Girls Can Run the World: Owning Your Power When You're Not the "Alpha" in the Room
Holman, Rebecca
Paperback
$27.00
The Art of Communication: How to Be Authentic, Lead Others, and Create Strong Connections
Apps, Judy
Hardcover
$22.80
Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect
Guidara, Will
Hardcover
From $11.99
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on Managing Yourself, Updated and Expanded (Featuring How Will You Measure Your Life? by Clayton M. Christensen)
Drucker, Peter F.
Gallo, Amy
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$25.60
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on Mental Toughness, Updated and Expanded (Featuring How to Stop Worrying about What Other People Think of You by Michael Gervais)
Gervais, Michael
Duckworth, Angela L.
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$25.60
Surrender to Lead: The Counterintuitive Approach to Driving Extraordinary Results
Kriegel, Jessica
Terry, Joe
Hardcover
$28.49
Take Breaks, Work Better: Measure Impact, Not Hours, and Transform Your Profitability
Briggs, John
Paperback
$19.90
Strong Ground: The Lessons of Daring Leadership, the Tenacity of Paradox, and the Wisdom of the Human Spirit
Brown, Brené
Hardcover
From $19.99
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on Leadership, Updated and Expanded (Featuring Begin with Trust by Frances X. Frei and Anne Morriss)
Edmondson, Amy C.
Ibarra, Herminia
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$25.60
How We Could: The Framework to Lead Without Drama, Build Alignment, and Call Teams to Greatness
Dorr, Alex
Hardcover
$26.55
What the Heck Is Eos?: A Complete Guide for Employees in Companies Running on EOS
Wickman, Gino
Bouwer, Tom
Hardcover
From $11.99
The Year in Tech, 2026: The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review
Anthony, Scott D.
Webb, Amy
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$21.80
The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More, and Change the Way You Lead Forever
Stanier, Michael Bungay
Paperback
$16.10
Hbr's 10 Must Reads 2026: The Definitive Management Ideas of the Year from Harvard Business Review (Featuring the Strategic Genius of Taylor Swift by
Meyer, Erin
Flyvbjerg, Bent
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$25.60
Stop Asking for Referrals: Build a Magnetic Business Through Intentional Care & Real Relationships
McNally, Flor de Maria
Paperback
$18.99
Get Scalable: The Operating System Your Business Needs To Run and Scale Without You
Deiss, Ryan
Paperback
$18.00
Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as If Your Life Depended on It
Voss, Chris
Raz, Tahl
Hardcover
From $14.99
The Mom Test: How to talk to customers & learn if your business is a good idea when everyone is lying to you
Fitzpatrick, Rob
Paperback
$23.99
Building Great Businesses: Create Momentum, Overcome Setbacks, and Scale with Confidence
Becker, Scott
Hardcover
$20.90
Bookkeeping - Accounting for Small Business: A Quickstudy Laminated Reference Guide
Epstein, Lita
Other
$6.60
Influence and Persuasion (HBR Emotional Intelligence Series)
Cialdini, Robert B.
Review, Harvard Business
Morgan, Nick
Paperback
$18.99
The First 90 Days, Updated and Expanded: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter
Watkins, Michael D.
Hardcover
From $11.99
Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving in
Patton, Bruce
Fisher, Roger
Ury, William
Paperback
From $11.99
Take It Personal: How to Succeed by Building Relationships and Playing the Long Game
Grutman, David
Hardcover
$26.60
Feedback That Works: How to Build and Deliver Your Message, Second Edition
Center for Creative Leadership
Paperback
$19.94
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on Strategy, Updated and Expanded (Featuring the Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy by Michael E. Porter)
Review, Harvard Business
Porter, Michael E.
Kim, W. Chan
Paperback
$25.60
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on High Performance, Updated and Expanded (Featuring Nine Things Successful People Do Differently by Heidi Grant)
Grant, Heidi
Goleman, Daniel
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$25.60
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on Managing People, Updated and Expanded (Featuring Are You a Good Boss--Or a Great One? by Linda A. Hill and Kent Lineback)
Goleman, Daniel
Hill, Linda A.
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$25.60
Dirtbag Billionaire: How Yvon Chouinard Built Patagonia, Made a Fortune, and Gave It All Away
Gelles, David
Hardcover
$28.50
The Phoenix Project: A Novel about It, Devops, and Helping Your Business Win
Spafford, George
Kim, Gene
Behr, Kevin
Paperback
$22.80
The Algorithm: The Hypergrowth Formula That Transformed Tesla, Lululemon, General Motors, and Spacex
McNeill, Jon
Hardcover
$28.50
Genius at Scale: How Great Leaders Drive Innovation
Hill, Linda A.
Tedards, Emily
Wild, Jason
Hardcover
$30.40
Anchored, Aligned, Accountable: A Framework for Transcending Bullsh*t and Transforming Our Lives and Work
Bethea, Aiko
Hardcover
$27.90
Getting You Ready for Power: A Woman's Guide to Building Confidence, Community, and Career Success
Meruelo, Alexis
Paperback
$16.10
Generative Ai: The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review
Mollick, Ethan
Cremer, David De
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$21.80
The 360 Degree Leader Workbook: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the Organization
Maxwell, John C.
Paperback
$18.99
Competing in the Age of AI: Strategy and Leadership When Algorithms and Networks Run the World
Lakhani, Karim R.
Iansiti, Marco
Hardcover
$33.25
Indispensable: How to Become the Company That Your Customers Can't Live Without
Calloway, Joe
Hardcover
$36.10
The Asshole Survival Guide: How to Deal with People Who Treat You Like Dirt
Sutton, Robert I.
Paperback
$18.04
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on Emotional Intelligence, Updated and Expanded (Featuring What Makes a Leader by Daniel Goleman)
Goleman, Daniel
Ibarra, Hermina
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$25.60
The 6 Types of Working Genius: A Better Way to Understand Your Gifts, Your Frustrations, and Your Team
Lencioni, Patrick M.
Hardcover
From $9.99
The Heart Work of Modern Leadership: 6 Differentiators of Exceptional Leaders
Grossman, David
Paperback
$18.95
The Oz Principle: Getting Results Through Individual and Organizational Accountability
Hickman, Craig
Connors, Roger
Smith, Tom
Paperback
$19.95
The Way of the Shepherd: Seven Secrets to Managing Productive People
Leman, Kevin
Pentak, William
Hardcover
$21.84
The One Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth about Extraordinary Results
Keller, Gary
Papasan, Jay
Hardcover
From $10.99
Playing to Win, Expanded with Bonus HBR Articles: How Strategy Really Works
Martin, Roger L.
Lafley, A. G.
Hardcover
$30.40
Demand-Side Sales 101: Stop Selling and Help Your Customers Make Progress
Engle, Greg
Moesta, Bob
Hardcover
$28.49
Inner Excellence: Train Your Mind for Extraordinary Performance and the Best Possible Life
Murphy, Jim
Paperback
From $10.99
The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace: Empowering Organizations by Encouraging People
Chapman, Gary
White, Paul
Paperback
From $9.99
The Hard Thing about Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers
Horowitz, Ben
Hardcover
$30.88
Never Settle: Persuasion and Negotiation Skills to Get What You Want
Qureshi, Attia
Richardson, John
Hardcover
$28.50
The Things We Hide: A Guide to Identifying Hidden Barriers and Leading with Authenticity
Dickerhoof, Tyler
Hardcover
$34.99
Leadership Unblocked: Break Through the Beliefs That Limit Your Potential
Wilkins, Muriel M.
Hardcover
$28.50
The Octopus Organization: A Guide to Thriving in a World of Continuous Transformation
Le-Brun, Phil
Werner, Jana
Hardcover
$33.25
Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most
Heen, Sheila
Patton, Bruce
Stone, Douglas
Paperback
From $11.99
Say This, Not That: How to Master 7 Dreaded Conversations As a Leader in the Modern Workplace
Flickinger, Chris
Paperback
$14.24
How to Win Friends and Influence People: Updated for the Next Generation of Leaders
Carnegie, Dale
Hardcover
From $14.99
You Don't Need a Title to Be a Leader: How Anyone, Anywhere, Can Make a Positive Difference
Sanborn, Mark
Hardcover
$18.05
The Founder's Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth
Allen, James
Zook, Chris
Hardcover
$30.40
Positive Intelligence: Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential and How You Can Achieve Yours
Chamine, Shirzad
Hardcover
$22.75
The Leading the Unleadable: How to Manage Mavericks, Cynics, Divas, and Other Difficult People
Willett, Alan
Paperback
$19.99
Team Topologies, 2nd Edition: Organizing Business and Technology for Fast Flow of Value
Skelton, Matthew
Pais, Manuel
Paperback
$26.60
The Trusted Advisor: 20th Anniversary Edition
Galford, Robert
Maister, David H.
Green, Charles
Paperback
$19.95
The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success
Thorndike, William N.
Hardcover
$30.40
Biblia del Vendedor: Tecnicas Efectivas Para El Vendedor Competitivo
Dey, Alejandro
Dey, Alex
Paperback
$13.25
The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business
Lencioni, Patrick M.
Hardcover
$27.55
The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You
Maxwell, John C.
Hardcover
$28.49
The New Gold Standard: 5 Leadership Principles for Creating a Legendary Customer Experience Courtesy of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company
Michelli, Joseph A.
Hardcover
$31.35
What Could Possibly Go Right?: The Essential Journey to Scale an Enduring Culture
Meyer, Danny
Hardcover
$30.40
Rewired: McKinsey's Playbook on How Leading Companies Win with Technology and AI
Smaje, Kate
Levin, Robert
Lamarre, Eric
Hardcover
$42.75
The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and Tactics for Changing Your Organization and the World
Linsky, Marty
Heifetz, Ronald A.
Grashow, Alexander
Hardcover
$33.25
The Lean Six SIGMA Pocket Toolbook: A Quick Reference Guide to Nearly 100 Tools for Improving Quality and Speed
George, Michael L.
Rowlands, David T.
Price, Mark
Paperback
From $10.99
Human + Machine, Updated and Expanded: Reimagining Work in the Age of AI
Daugherty, Paul R.
Wilson, H. James
Hardcover
$30.40
Harvard Business Review Entrepreneur's Handbook: Everything You Need to Launch and Grow Your New Business
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
$28.49
Nolo's Guide to Single-Member Llcs: How to Form & Run Your Single-Member Limited Liability Company
Steingold, David M.
Paperback
$20.89
Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It...and Why the Rest Don't (Rockefeller Habits 2.0)
Harnish, Verne
Paperback
$23.70
The Challenger Sale: Taking Control of the Customer Conversation
Dixon, Matthew
Adamson, Brent
Hardcover
$32.30
The Effective Executive: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things Done
Drucker, Peter F.
Paperback
$18.99
Fight Less, Win More: How Master Negotiators Influence Hearts, Minds, and Deals
Smith, Jonathan B.
Gaunt, Derek
Hardcover
$26.60
Dare to Think Differently: How Open-Mindedness Creates Exceptional Decision-Making
Zaltman, Gerald
Hardcover
$26.60
The Next Conversation Workbook: Practical Exercises for Arguing Less and Talking More
Fisher, Jefferson
Paperback
$20.90
Tax-Free Wealth: How to Build Massive Wealth by Permanently Lowering Your Taxes
Wheelwright, Tom
Paperback
$23.70
Our Iceberg Is Melting: Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions
Kotter, John
Rathgeber, Holger
Hardcover
$27.55
The Black Swan: Second Edition: The Impact of the Highly Improbable: With a New Section: On Robustness and Fragility
Taleb, Nassim Nicholas
Paperback
From $11.99