Insights

Thoughts on change management, innovation strategy, marketing strategy, and the future of work from 18 Coffees.

After a Reorg, Map the Real Workflow Before Designing the Comms Plan

Reorgs change reporting lines. They rarely change how work actually flows. In the first 90 days after a reorg, the highest-value comms work is mapping informal influence, friction points, and the network of trusted relationships that carry decisions across teams. Then the messaging can start.

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Business Trends, Future of Work Robin Kasner Business Trends, Future of Work Robin Kasner

June 2026 Business Trends: A Shifting Workforce, Gen Z's AI Skepticism, and Brands at America's 250

Three data-backed business trends shaping June 2026: women now hold more U.S. payroll jobs than men as male participation declines, Gen Z may be more fluent but skeptical about AI at work, and brands navigate a fractured America 250 where patriotism has become politically coded. What each shift means for leaders.

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May 2026 Business Trends: The Whispering Office, Emotion AI, AI in Politics, and a Workforce Shift

Four data-backed business trends shaping May 2026: AI dictation apps reshaping how offices work, emotion AI watching employees without consent, AI moving from a business story to a political and regulatory one, and a quiet but significant shift in how college-educated fathers are dividing their time between home and paid work.

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April 2026 Business Trends: AI Sabotage, the Stability Aspiration, and a Leadership Reset

Three data-backed business trends for April 2026: why nearly a third of workers are sabotaging their company's AI, why Gen Z is romanticizing 9-to-5 stability while struggling to find entry-level roles, and what the Artemis II mission can teach exhausted leadership teams.

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March 2026 Business Trends: AI, Burnout, Change Management

March's trends reveal a common thread: organizations are investing in new technology and strategy without investing in the capacity to change how people work. From AI adoption divides to silent burnout among high performers, these four workforce trends are shaping how leaders navigate 2026.

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January 2026 Business Trends: When AI Promises Meet Ground Truth

CEOs report AI saves them 8+ hours weekly; employees say less than 2 hours. RTO compliance surged as economic anxiety shifted workplace power. Corporate social responsibility rhetoric retreated. January's trends reveal widening gaps between how leaders perceive change and how workers experience it.

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Caleb Gardner Caleb Gardner

Your org chart isn’t ready for AI

While leaders focus on AI skills training, the real disruption is structural. AI agents are becoming actual team members, forcing organizations to rethink rigid hierarchies and create more fluid, responsive structures that operate at the speed of insight rather than bureaucracy.

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