The CEO Who Trained and Fired 80% of His Team – Eric Vaughan

We have been hearing the heartwrenching stories (real-time) about employees being laid off daily. We all said, ‘how evil’ to fire someone through surprise emails, phone calls, or loudspeaker announcements during lunch time. But not today. Here we bring you a story of a CEO who invested 20% of the company’s payroll into AI training, guided the team, and was present on Mondays. However, the twist ends sadly. Eventually, the good CEO turns cold and fires 80% of the employees. The plot is definitely not what you think. The CEO tried his best until…

What Happened?

The story dates back to 2023, but it remains relevant because we live in an age of corporate blowing hot and cold during layoffs. However, now we meet someone who didn’t want to lay off anyone. The CEO is none other than Eric Vaughan, the leader of IgniteTech.

He truly believed AI was an “existential threat” to businesses and wanted the team to adapt. To push the team towards a change, he created what he called “AI Mondays.” Those Mondays are solely dedicated to AI projects and little else. He didn’t hesitate to invest 20% of the company’s payroll into AI training, initiated reimbursements for AI tools, and Prompt Engineering classes. After all, his efforts fell flat, and hundreds of employees protested against the change.

Who Resisted Eric Vaughan’s Mandate of AI the Most?

To everyone’s surprise, the technical employees (engineers and IT teams in particular) resisted the change the most. They criticized the AI’s limitations rather than using it to its full potential. Conversely, marketing and sales teams have shown interest in learning about and implementing AI in their tasks.

Talking to Fortune, Eric Vaughan said, “You can’t compel people to change, especially if they don’t believe.”

Vaughan Decided to Lay Off…

Not just one or two, but the company took over 12 months to reshuffle, fire 80% of staff, and replace those who wouldn’t adapt to AI. The company became much leaner yet stronger by 2024 with AI and the right people on board. Soon, they came up with two new AI products (Eloquens AI and MyPersonas), which subsequently drove the company toward profits.

IgniteTech registered a staggering 75% profit margin (EBITDA) that year. During this critical period in 2023, the company also acquired Jive Software. Later in 2024, the company secured a significant acquisition, Khoros, all thanks to AI and AI-led talent. According to him, he would do it again if needed and has no regrets.