Business Management & Organization
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The Cantillon Effect: Why Wages Decoupled From Productivity in 1971
I was looking at a chart recently that you have probably seen floating around financial Twitter or LinkedIn. It tracks two lines: productivity and compensation. From 1948 until the early 1970s, these two lines moved in perfect lockstep. If workers produced more value, they got paid more money. It was a simple, logical correlation. But starting around…
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The Battle for Warner Bros: Paramount’s Hostile Takeover vs. The Netflix Deal
Is cash always king? You would think so. But when you dig into the corporate warfare happening right now between Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), Paramount Skydance, and Netflix, the answer gets complicated. I recently sat down to record a course update on M&A strategy because the situation changes almost daily. I wanted to understand why a board…
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2026 LLM Refresh: How AI Actually Works (Without the Hype)
I have seen a lot of articles recently riding various “hype trains” regarding how Artificial Intelligence is evolving. It feels like every week there is a new model that claims to be sentient or capable of human-level reasoning. I wanted to understand what is actually true. So, I did a bunch of research. I read…
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Are AI Layoffs Real? Analyzing the Narrative vs. The Numbers
I have noticed a strange pattern emerging on earnings calls lately. CFOs and CEOs keep repeating the same story: AI is driving efficiency, and that efficiency is the reason for recent layoffs. It makes for a clean narrative. It tells investors that the company is on the cutting edge and cutting costs simultaneously. But when…
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The 2025 Private Equity Paradox: Why Deals Are Up but Fundraising Is Down
I spend a lot of time reading research reports. Lately, I’ve been buried in data regarding Venture Capital (VC) and Private Equity (PE) for the start of 2025. While going through the SQ4 close-out numbers, something strange stood out to me. The headlines are screaming about a massive resurgence in PE deal activity. We are…
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2026 Predictions: The End of the Human Calculator?
When I started at PwC eight years ago, I kept hearing about the “reviewer shift.” The partners promised that technology would eventually handle the manual grunt work. They said first-year associates like me would stop being preparers and start being reviewers. For years, that felt like a corporate myth. We were still manually keying data and fighting…
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Regulators vs. Robots: Why the PCAOB is Sounding the Alarm on AI and Private Equity
I’ve been leaning on AI a lot lately. It’s efficient. It gets the job done. But I’ve noticed something. When I let the machine do the heavy lifting, my brain turns off a little bit. I stop scrutinizing every word. It turns out, I’m not alone. And that is exactly what has the Public Company…
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Breaking Down IBM’s $11 Billion Bet on Confluent
I was looking at IBM’s recent moves and their proposed acquisition of Confluent for $11 billion caught my eye. IBM has been trying to reinvent itself for years. Moving from a legacy IT giant to a modern AI and cloud company. Why spend so much on a data streaming company? It felt like a big…
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The War for Warner Bros: What Happens When a Signed Deal Gets a Hostile Bid?
I was following the news about Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery. It looked like a done deal. Netflix was set to acquire Warner’s valuable studio and streaming assets like HBO and DC Comics. It seemed locked in. Then Paramount showed up with a truckload of cash. This got me thinking. What actually happens when a…
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Are You Paid for Time or Value? AI is Forcing the Question
My bike accident forced me to re-evaluate how I work. With one hand out of commission, my typing speed dropped to near zero. I couldn’t rely on putting in long hours at the keyboard anymore. I had to find a new way to get things done. It forced me to lean heavily on AI. I…