Hybrid is dead, and Corporate America is shoving people back into cubicles whether they like it or not. This episode tears into the new wave of hardline return‑to‑office mandates, the power games behind them, and what this means for talent, cities, and company culture.

• RTO isn’t about culture; it’s about execs who don’t know how to manage people they can’t see and leases they can’t get out of.
• Workers have largely complied, on paper, while mentally checking out, and engagement is tanking as mandates ramp up.
• RTO has quietly become a layoff tool: force attrition, skip severance, and blame “team cohesion.”
• The federal government’s own hardline in‑person push gives every private‑sector CEO cover to crack down.

If you’re getting dragged back to a badge reader and a beige cubicle, this episode says the quiet part out loud.

Acquisition season is in full swing: Josh and Mike dig into the latest corporate feeding frenzy, where startups get swallowed whole and innovation is more often killed than scaled. Who gets rich, who gets steamrolled, and why most “exits” don’t look anything like the pitch deck.

• Why “exit” isn’t always a win… and who pays the price
• Post-acquisition culture clash: founders vs. the suits.
• When M&A creates value and when it’s a graveyard for good ideas.
• Case studies: Amazon, Google, Stripe, and the latest private equity machinations.

You might sell your way out, but will anything you built actually survive? Find out—this week, the truth hurts.

The axe has finally fallen: Josh and Mike break down the extinction-level event in middle management, why the ‘layer cake’ is collapsing, and what that means for real operators, talent, and strategy.

• Middle management: necessary glue or useless bureaucracy?
• Why companies are gutting the layer, and what’s replacing it.
• Tech, AI, and the myth of “self-managing” teams.
• Winners, losers, and wild restructures in 2025.

If you’re a VP who adds more meetings than value, update your résumé. This episode spares no one.