Mostly Growth

Where Did All the Middle Managers Go?

Oct 22, 2025
They roast title inflation and trace why middle managers are disappearing and what that means for leadership and hiring. They run a rapid Pricing Model Roast, weighing hybrid, usage, outcome, and take‑rate approaches. They debate whether momentum actually protects companies and how to build urgency without burning out teams. They close with takes on LinkedIn metrics, optimal direct‑report spans, and why book publishing fails creators.
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ADVICE

Use Hybrid Pricing As The Practical Default

  • Use hybrid pricing as the pragmatic default: it's imperfect but balances seller and buyer needs.
  • Kyle calls hybrid 'the best worst' model because it compromises between flat, usage, and feature approaches to capture revenue and flexibility.
INSIGHT

Outcome Pricing Scales Big But Burns Cash

  • Outcome-based pricing has the highest upside but carries major execution and cash-flow risk because customers pay after outcomes.
  • Kyle warns AI-heavy products risk consuming compute upfront while waiting 30–60 day payments under outcome deals.
INSIGHT

Flat Fees Can Destroy You With High Usage

  • Flat-fee subscriptions carry the largest downside risk when customer behavior changes, because fixed prices can be gamed by heavy users.
  • Kyle uses Red Lobster's all-you-can-eat promotions as an analogy for runaway cost with flat fees.
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