Hiring headache to AI fix: Founder’s bold move after staff frustrations

Parthasarathy recounted the experience of a founder friend running an AI-based services firm, who rapidly scaled his team from five to 25 employees during a phase of strong growth.

“True story from a founder friend of an AI-based services firm in a tier-2 city. He had a huge scale-up from 5 to 25 employees in a short time due to crazy growth,” he wrote.

However, the expansion soon brought operational challenges. The founder allegedly grew frustrated with what he described as a “casual attitude” and lack of professionalism among younger employees with less than five years of experience.

Issues reportedly included employees requesting to work from home without prior notice, missing deadlines, and taking extended breaks during work hours. Hiring challenges further compounded the problem.

“He got vexed beyond a point because out of 20 offers only 10 joined, and finally just 3 stuck with him,” Parthasarathy noted.

According to the post, the founder turned to AI to address the situation. “None of it was due to pay issues or real work challenges—just ‘I will do only so much’ problems,” he wrote.

The founder then reportedly spent 72 hours building automations using Claude, creating 24 workflows to eliminate several roles within the company.

While the shift reduced reliance on employees, the founder continues to work long hours, reportedly juggling multiple responsibilities including tech and sales.

“Founder still ends up doing 18-hour days to double up as tech lead, sales lead and multiple other roles thanks to Claude,” the post added, concluding with a warning that professionals need to recognise how AI is already reshaping employability.