Author: Peter Bloom, Professor of Management, University of Essex

A former CEO and executive chairman of Google, recently suggested that the tech giant’s apparent lag in AI development was due to the company prioritising employees’ personal wellbeing over progress. Eric Schmidt told an audience: “Google decided that work-life balance and going home early and working from home was more important than winning.” Schmidt later retracted his statement, claiming he “misspoke”. Yet his comment reflects a common view in the tech industry – that progress is dependent on intensive work patterns and keeping a close eye on staff. Companies such as Amazon have implemented contoversial worker tracking systems. Others promote…