Cutting Costs or Increasing Productivity

Recently, I had a conversation with a couple of people who had radically different views on how to use AI. It clarified something I'd been toying with, but hadn't quite grasped.

1. Some businesses will use AI to cut costs
2. Some businesses will use AI to grow

One person is ready to use AI to cut costs by reducing headcount.

The other is ready to use AI to increase productivity.

Not only did this make me more optimistic, but it also helped me see that changing the branding of this newsletter makes sense. The original mission of After Design was to help designers transition to adjacent careers.

But over time, I changed the content of the newsletter to help those who are trying to use AI to be more productive.

I moved from person 1 to person 2

(not that I wanted to cut jobs, but I assumed that many people were going to be cut.)

I'm optimistic because it shows that there are people who want to grow rather than just cut costs.

Which organization are you a part of? Are you cutting costs or increasing productivity?

I'm not saying one method is better than the other. You know your business and goals better than I do.

But your people will feel the difference. Businesses that are cutting budgets have fear-based cultures. They're not as productive because they're spending mental energy worrying about the next round of cuts.

Businesses that are growing inspire innovation. It's exciting to find new solutions to old problems.

Personally, I've worked for failing businesses. You can taste the fear in the air. Productivity goes way down because people are distracted. It takes a toll.

I've also worked for businesses that are in hypergrowth mode, and it's energizing to dig for new solutions. We all love that "Eureka!" moment.

So the question comes down to: Do you want to grow your business or remain flat? There's profit both ways. But I've worked for public companies, and I know that staying flat is moving backwards.

A business that can train employees to be more productive with AI will be more successful in the long run. Or you can hire someone like me, someone who is constantly finding new ways to use AI to be more productive and can layer that on top of existing expertise across the team.