Eric Mosley and Derek Irvine – Making Work Human: Book Review & Audio Summary

Book Info

• Book name: Making Work Human: How Human-Centered Companies Are Changing the Future of Work and the World
• Author: Eric Mosley, Derek Irvine
• Genre: Business, Management, Human Resources
• Published Year: 2022
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill
• Language: English

Audio Summary

Synopsis

Here’s the pitch: workplaces are broken because we treat people like machines. The fix? Gratitude, recognition, and-brace yourself-actually caring about employees as humans. Eric Mosley and Derek Irvine, the folks behind Workhuman, argue that the VUCA world (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous-yes, they use military jargon) demands workplaces built on connection and meaning. Not because it’s nice. Because it’s profitable. The book promises to marry hard data with warm fuzzies, showing how recognition programs and human-centered culture can boost both happiness AND the bottom line. It’s part manifesto, part business case, part instruction manual for HR folks tired of watching talent walk out the door.

Key Takeaways

• The Big Idea: Human skills-creativity, connection, flexibility-are becoming MORE valuable as AI advances, not less. Companies that treat employees like appliances are dinosaurs.
• The Controversial Point: The authors are selling their own platform (Workhuman), so there’s an inherent bias that’s impossible to ignore. Are they prophets or just really good salespeople?
• The Actionable Part: Build recognition into your culture systematically-not as an afterthought. Small, frequent acknowledgments beat annual reviews every time.
• The Hidden Gem: The psychological safety angle is undersold in most summaries. Employees who feel safe to fail actually innovate more. Revolutionary? No. Underutilized? Absolutely.

My Summary

Let’s Talk About Your Soul-Crushing Job

Look, I picked this up because I’ve worked in enough dysfunctional environments to know that most workplace culture books are-how do I put this gently-complete garbage. They’re written by consultants who’ve never had a boss micromanage their lunch breaks or been CC’d on a passive-aggressive email chain that made them question their will to live.

So when I saw that Mosley and Irvine were pitching a “human-centered” approach to work, my cynicism meter redlined. And yeah, there’s a catch here that you need to know upfront: these guys literally run Workhuman, a company that sells recognition software. So take everything with a grain of salt the size of a salt lick.

The Writing: Competent But Corporate

Here’s the thing-the prose is fine. It’s clear. It’s organized. It won’t make you want to throw the book across the room. But it also won’t make you underline passages with trembling hands at 2 AM. This is business writing, through and through. You can almost hear the PowerPoint slides clicking in the background.

The structure is logical enough. They start with the “why” (humans have needs, shocking), move to the “what” (recognition, gratitude, purpose), and eventually get to the “how” (their platform, surprise surprise). But there are stretches-particularly in the middle-where it feels like you’re reading a very long LinkedIn post that someone’s really proud of.

(I’ll admit I skimmed a few chapters. Don’t tell anyone.)

What Actually Lands

Okay, my cynicism aside, they’re not wrong about the core premise. The research they cite is legit. Employees who feel recognized DO perform better. Psychological safety IS linked to innovation. The VUCA framework, while annoyingly buzzwordy, does capture something real about modern markets.

And there’s this one section about the difference between transactional recognition (here’s a gift card, now shut up) and genuine appreciation that actually made me think. Most companies suck at gratitude because they treat it like a checkbox. Mosley and Irvine argue it needs to be woven into the fabric of how work happens. Not a program. A culture.

That’s… actually good advice.

Where It Falls Flat

But here’s my beef: they’re so focused on selling the business case for humanity that they kinda forget to be, well, human about it. Everything circles back to ROI, engagement metrics, retention numbers. Which-fine, I get it. You gotta speak the language of executives. But after a while, it starts to feel like they’re saying “care about your employees… because it’ll make you money.”

And maybe that’s strategic. Maybe that’s how you get CEOs to listen. But it left a weird taste in my mouth.

Also, the lack of concrete implementation stories hurt. Readers kept complaining about wanting more real-world examples, and honestly? They’re right. The book gestures at companies doing this well but rarely gets into the messy, difficult, unglamorous work of actually changing a toxic culture.

The Elephant in the Room

Let’s address it: the authors are selling something. Their company literally makes money when businesses buy into this philosophy and implement their platform. Does that invalidate everything they say? No. Does it mean you should read with one eyebrow raised? Absolutely.

It’s like getting diet advice from someone who owns a gym. They might be right. They also have a vested interest in you believing them.

The Verdict

Making Work Human is a solid B-minus business book that’s preaching to the choir of HR professionals who already believe in this stuff. If you need ammunition for convincing skeptical leadership that employee wellbeing matters, this book arms you with data and frameworks. If you’re looking for a transformative reading experience that’ll change how you see work forever-keep looking.

It’s useful. It’s sometimes insightful. It’s occasionally inspiring. But it never quite escapes the shadow of its own corporate polish. The irony of a book about humanizing work feeling so… institutional… isn’t lost on me.

Still, in a genre full of empty platitudes and recycled management fads, Mosley and Irvine at least bring receipts. That’s worth something.