Rewatching Severance
Amanda Setili
I help leaders agree on what needs to change (and how). Author, "The Agility Advantage" and "Fearless Growth?". Member, Marshall Goldsmith's 100 Coaches.
Season 2 of the Apple TV series “Severance” came out this month, so to get ready, Rob and I rewatched Season 1. In the show, employees of the mega-company Lumon Industries spend their days performing cryptic work without any understanding of their purpose or impact.
When the characters question the nature of their work, they are met with circular corporate speak and quasi-religious platitudes about the founder’s wisdom. They’re given silly, infantilizing rewards for meeting their quotas.
The whole show is intentionally over-the-top, but I suspect it strikes a nerve because of the reality that many employees feel disengaged at work.
Have you ever heard of a leader who doesn’t like his or her decisions to be questioned and who responds to challenges with buzzwords? I’ll bet you have.
I’ll also bet that on some such occasions, the leader had no intention to come across in that way and honestly believed they were doing what was best for their organization.
In other words, it’s easy to accidentally disenfranchise others. Severance reminds us not to stray close to such a misstep (and it's a fascinating show in many other ways).
领英推荐
The antidote to Lumon-style management isn't complex – it's about treating employees as whole human beings capable of understanding and contributing to meaningful work.
The greatest irony of Severance is that Lumon's elaborate system of control ultimately fails because you cannot suppress human curiosity and the desire for meaning. Real organizations thrive when they tap into these fundamental human traits, rather than trying to minimize them.
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I help successful leaders and their teams agree on what needs to change and how to make it happen. I am the author of?Fearless?Growth and?The Agility Advantage.?
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CEO, Leadership & Executive Coach at BigBlueGumball. TEDx speaker. Author of “VisuaLeadership.” MG 100 Coaches.
1 个月Great piece, Amanda -- I definitely think the management team at Lumen could benefit from some leadership development and executive coaching! ??
Executive Coach and Mentor | Trigger-Free Leadership | Mindset Mastery for Teams
1 个月I stopped watching after 3 episodes of season 1 because the show was too real and raw for me. It speaks directly to what Marx wrote about "alienation" when we are unable to grow into who we truly are. I'm becoming more and more convinced that we will not be saved by "conscious capitalism," or any adaptation that still treats workers as capital rather than dignified subjects and full owners of their own labor.
Inc 5000 CEOs Leading the Future with Executive Abundance | Exec Coach: Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches | Top 16 Leadership Voice | 2x TEDx Speaker | Intl Bestseller 65 Books | x-Public Board Member
1 个月Great reflection Amanda! True leadership is about fostering clarity, engagement, and a sense of purpose—not hiding behind jargon. When employees understand and connect with their work, both they and the organization thrive. Thanks for sharing this thought-provoking perspective!
CEO, MVP Executive Development, Executive Coach, Business Advisor, Leadership Expert, Facilitator, Author of the National Bestseller "What Lights You Up? Illuminate Your Path and Take the Next Big Step in Your Career"
1 个月Sounds like an interesting show Amanda Setili! Human impact and humane leadership matters, we are all yearning for that deeper connection with people at work as Morag Barrett, and her Skye Team colleagues write about so beautifully in YOU, ME, WE. How much better is the work we do when we feel like it matters and there is a purpose behind it all?
Empowering business leaders to leverage their personal brand for business growth | Business Strategist & Speaker | Linkedin Strategy | Video Marketing | Online Visibility | AI Marketing
1 个月Interesting post, Amanda. I haven't seen the show, but I can imagine that environment. Thankfully, I can't say that I have experienced that firsthand. This sentence really grabbed me: The greatest irony of Severance is that Lumon's elaborate system of control ultimately fails because you cannot suppress human curiosity and the desire for meaning.