This is a story about how quality parmesan cheese-making brought people together for their livelihood and much more! It goes beyond the “taste” topic with a dash of strategy leadership and future of work research.

Yes, AI can answer your question in seconds. But the human cost will likely show up later if we don’t choose wisely how and when to use AI for work. A new Harvard Business Review study describes ‘relationslipping’: teams weaken when people skip conversations with colleagues in favor of AI engagement. Team members stop learning who knows what, and trust and coordination erode at the teamwork level. HBR story authors recommend using AI to prepare for conversations, not replace them.
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Gartner sees a similar risk at company scale. It predicts that by 2029, 30% of employees laid off because AI replaced them will need to be rehired, often at higher cost. To be clear, the analysis of over one million layoffs found fewer than 1% directly tied to AI productivity gains. Gartner’s advice: amplify people instead of simply automating their tasks or roles out of the organization.

As several Founding 500 members frequently highlight in their published stories and videos that relate to the 'relationslipping' idea, a key takeaway is do what is right for the circumstance to maintain trusted relationships with people:

• Corina Tennies: Involve contributors first; give AI a specific job and keep people accountable for value and mastery.
• Janel Woodard: Ask for specific feedback during a career pivot, and treat product stories as change stories for people.
• Will Jantzen: Protect your energy; the AI-era “infinite workday” taxes your thinking and relationships.
• John Phillips: Support community and love collaboration. Get to know people and their personal and professional interests.
• Jeffrey Mares: Build trust first; people should know who to ask before learning the tools.
• Blaine Mathieu: After six hours a day with AI agents, he lost patience for human disagreement. Track AI versus human time to make needed adjustments for real relationships.
• Aaron Smith: Replace one-size-fits-all direction for team members with personalized mentoring.
  

Here’s a challenging question to think through. Who has a significant stake in value ownership when people and AI co-create value? One answer to consider is more than a century old: the cooperative, a business built on member relationships and trust.
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‍Made in Italy: a cooperative story to watch

First, a short definition for context. A cooperative is a business owned, governed, and operated democratically by its members. Influence follows “one member, one vote,” not the amount of shares owned or leadership position. Surpluses are reinvested or returned based on how much members use the co-op, not how much capital they put in. Common types include worker, consumer, producer, shared-services, and platform co-ops.

John Russell, a journalist based in the U.S. reporting for More Perfect Union, published this video story below in December 2025. I’ve been thinking about all 18 minutes of it now and then ever since. In fact, it helped to shape the reimagined Creatorbase® strategy for our launch in May 2026.

Economic historian Vera Negri Zamagni of the University of Bologna believes that co-ops answer inequality and market concentration where private markets and governments fall short. Her insight for people, including creators for business: small co-ops compete by networking, sharing business advice, tools, and funded operations while staying focused on their business domain expertise and decision-making influence.

Why AI adoption makes co-ops timely

• Productivity gains stay with people. If AI eliminates human tasks, a co-op approach can shorten the work scope timeline or move people to higher-value work, instead of removing them.
  
• People can bargain together. Pooled expertise and content can give members leverage to negotiate more favorable opportunities, terms, and conditions.
  
• Co-op members govern operations. People decide whether AI replaces or enables work tasks based on a variety of business and profitability goals, including workforce well-being.

‍Co-op success to consider from REI

I’m an REI customer and have experienced American-made cooperatives first hand. Not only is the shopping experience at my local REI store a pleasure, I look forward to the member perks and experiences that follow.

REI, the largest U.S. consumer co-op with 26 million members, narrowed its 2025 net loss by $102 million to $54.3 million under its Peak 28 plan. It shut its travel business and tightened inventory, yet still distributed $203 million to members through rewards. The turnaround is unfinished, but the lesson holds: cut waste, not the loyalty engine (engaged members).
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Creatorbase® is leaning into co-op principles and programs

Rooted in The Co-creators Way (Co-cre8) and our Founding 500 members’ expertise, we see five ideas to expand on and explore further with members in 2027:

• Referral incentives (live today): Creatorbase members refer other experts from their relationships with a 20% discount for either Premium or Limited membership plan. For an approved Founding 500 member referral, a $50.00 payment is made as either 1099 income to the current member or as a donation to the Creatorbase perks fund; they choose.  
  
• Equity in Co-cre8 projects: Share long-term IP revenue in proportion to contribution, supporting a member’s Durable Ownership™ goals.
  
• Content and tech collective: Negotiate access to experiences and resources for verified human expertise to co-create for stakeholder goals.
  
• Member voice: Vote on strategic initiatives, quarterly editorial focus, and ongoing AI choices and development.
  
• Support and income tools: Pool buying power and route project opportunities to members in between full-time (e.g., 40 hours per week) work roles.
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Help us help you and others

Which co-op idea do you think Creatorbase should explore or expand on first? Choose at least one action below to engage:

• Apply to join Creatorbase member-only discussions and Co-cre8 projects.
• Subscribe to the Creatorbase Brief™ weekly newsletter for member insights and updates.‍
• Share on LinkedIn with #Creatorbase and #DurableOwnership hashtags.