We're a people company. Stop laughing, it's true.

How many times have we heard big organisations say they are "people companies" or that they believe "people are our number one asset"?

Suppose this were true. When times got tough as they are now and companies needed to save money and cut costs, would the employees be the first thing to go or the last? Yet we all know that when belts are being tightened, the people in these "people companies" are the first thing to get the chop.

This is stupid for numerous, obvious reasons: if I wanted to build a really cheap car I could in theory at least do it by getting rid of the most expensive bit: the engine. The car would certainly be cheap, but it wouldn't be much use because I'd got rid of the bit which makes it go. The same is true of companies: the people are not "assets", they're what makes the company go. No people, no company.

So for all their posturing and bluster about being "people companies", we all know that really, if the cost-cutting were to continue as far as most companies wanted, all that would be left would be a building containing only furniture, computers and the board of directors. We all know reality is harsh and times and are tough, but if you're really a furniture, computer and director oriented company, do us all a favour and at least stop lying about it.

This is your life (minus the assholes)

Clearly the explosion in social networking is having far-reaching effects. Ordinary people (that's us) are discovering that the scribbly, chaotic mess which serves them for thoughts and ideas are genuinely interesting, in fact other people are actually willing to read them and even follow us in the hope that we'll make more.

So what happens when ordinary people start to credit their own opinions and ideas? Well, lots of things. But here's an idea for you: in a world where we have access to a vast audience who take what we say seriously, what happens when organisations or people treat us badly? Well, we tell people about it. And maybe they tell other people.

Obviously we can't lie about how we were treated. That's libel (or slander) and is illegal, for good reasons. But if we're telling the truth... what happens? Most of us know a business sociopath or two, maybe a middle manager at work or a telephone company. And most of us know that they continue to be employed and continue to dish out totally unacceptable behaviour precisely because until now, we had no way of letting other people know what these lunatics were doing. So there were little in the way consequences to their behaviour, and on they went with it.

Well, now there is a way we can let people know. Welcome to the age of treating each other fairly.