Motley Fool Money: What to Know About a Stock’s Workforce

Date: January 17, 2026
Host: Robert Brokamp
Guest: Dr. Ben Zweig, CEO of Revelio Labs, Professor at NYU

Episode Overview

This Saturday Personal Finance edition explores the often overlooked link between a company’s workforce and its long-term investment prospects. Host Robert Brokamp discusses:

• The evolving nature of the S&P 500
• Key macroeconomic updates (inflation, Social Security)
• A deep-dive interview segment with workforce intelligence expert Dr. Ben Zweig, who shares actionable insights on how investors and job seekers can analyze company workforce data for better decisions

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Changing Nature of the S&P 500

[00:04 - 04:02]

• Turnover in the S&P 500: Since 1985, approximately 20% of companies in the S&P 500 turn over every five years.
  • “Back in the 1970s, the average company lifespan in the index was 29.3 years, whereas it has been 18.3 years so far in the 2000s.” — Robert Brokamp [00:40]
• Market Leadership Cycle: Leadership in the index is dynamic, with former market leaders often stumbling and new ones taking over.
  • Quoting Sam Rowe: “In any given period, there are stocks driving the overall market higher, and often many of these market leaders eventually stumble and underperform. But other stocks always emerge to take the baton and extend the market's very long trend higher.” [01:10]
• Relevance for Long-Term Investors: Reinforces both the value and risks of broad index investing.

2. Social Security’s Uncertain Future

[01:53 - 03:33]

• Potential Funding Shortfall: The Social Security trust fund could be depleted by 2032, precipitating a 20–25% cut in benefits.
• Possible Reforms: Could include higher taxes, later claiming ages, means testing, or formula changes.
• Investor Takeaway: Importance of understanding policy risk and how demographic and political changes can shape financial futures.

3. Current Macroeconomic Trends: Inflation and Wages

[03:33 - 04:02]

• Inflation Data: Consumer Price Index at 2.7%; essentials like shelter, food, and healthcare rising even faster.
• Stagnant Wages: Wage growth is stalling even as some costs continue to climb.
• Labor Market Sentiment: Only 43.1% of people believe they could find a new job within three months if they lost their current one—the lowest since 2013.

“Wage growth for many workers has stalled, as has the job market itself.” — Robert Brokamp [03:49]

Main Interview: How to Analyze a Company’s Workforce

[04:59 - 17:58]
Guest: Dr. Ben Zweig

A. Why Workforce Analysis Matters for Investors

[05:31 - 07:32]

• Case Study: Meta’s Shifting Strategy

  • Revelio Labs, co-analyzing with Bloomberg, detected a sudden halt in VR and AR hiring at Meta, foreshadowing a strategic retreat from metaverse ambitions—before the company publicly acknowledged it.
  • Quote:

    “We discovered that right after Facebook had done the rebrand to Meta, they had been hiring all these people that were skilled in VR and AR … And what we had seen ... was a reversal of that. … They had basically stopped hiring people with VR and AR skills, like, immediately.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [05:41]

• Impact of Workforce Data: Tracking skills, hiring, and firing signals can reveal major strategic pivots or internal challenges before they hit headlines or earnings reports.

B. The Four Key Workforce Data Sources

[07:32 - 11:10] Dr. Zweig identifies four types of publicly accessible workforce data that provide powerful insights:

1. Employee Profiles (e.g., LinkedIn)

   • Show start/stop dates, employee churn, skills, role distribution.
   • Enables measurement of attrition by role, geography, and more.
   • Actionable Example: If key sales staff are leaving, it could warn of missed sales targets.

2. Job Postings

   • Provide forward-looking info on company hiring intentions and evolving priorities.
   • Hiring freezes, expansion into new skill areas, or sudden pivots are detectable here.

3. Employee Perception

   • Online reviews and satisfaction surveys signal morale, business outlook, and internal reaction to changes.
   • Quote: “Employee perception … is kind of the most underrated one.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [08:55]

4. Salary Benchmarks

   • Pay transparency gives clues about labor market dynamics, bargaining power, and role prioritization.

Other data sources: Layoff notices, immigration filings, freelance platform activity.

C. Using These Insights as a Worker

[11:10 - 14:01]

• Information Gap in Job Searching
  • Workers frequently select roles based on limited information (family, immediate environment).
  • Most people are unaware of the breadth of occupations available, leading to suboptimal job choices.

“When people go out to the market and start looking for a job, maybe after high school or after college, they don't know the occupations that even exist out there. … And what ends up happening is that workers select into occupations based on what their parents do, what their relatives do, what their friends’ parents do.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [12:28]

• Better Data = Better Career Moves
  • Advocates for more accessible data on compensation, retention, work-life balance, etc., to empower job seekers.

D. The Reality of Job Descriptions and Continuous Change

[14:01 - 17:58]

• Accuracy of Job Listings:

  • Most job descriptions are only partially accurate; roles often evolve after hiring.
  • Business demands, workforce changes, and employee strengths/preferences drive dynamic role evolution.

• Role of Leadership:

  • Managers act as the “liaison between the needs of the business and what the workers can provide. … management standing on one foot is job reconfiguration.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [16:21]

• AI and Technological Change:

  • Tech and AI do not replace entire jobs, but automate specific tasks inside them.
  • Ongoing reconfiguration is needed both by companies and individual employees.

• Trackable Evolution:

  • The evolving nature of jobs—from initial description to actual tasks—should be continuously tracked for optimal management and strategic advantage.

“What firms need to do and workers need to do is reconfigure their workload to adapt to some parts of that workload being automated.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [17:04]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On S&P 500 Turnover:
  “Six of the Magnificent Seven have been added in the past 25 years.” — Robert Brokamp [00:50]

• On Social Security Reform:
  “Likely it will be some combination of higher taxes, later claiming ages, means testing benefits and/or changes to the benefit formula.” — Robert Brokamp [03:09]

• On Analyzing Workforce Data:
  “The most powerful source of information is online profiles … the full stocks and flows of employees and how that breaks down by various characteristics.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [08:24]

• On Employee Perception:
  “Employees know a great deal about what’s happening inside a company.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [09:00]

• On the Modern Labor Market:
  “It's a much more distributed market than it's been back when people lived in small villages.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [11:38]

• On Job Fluidity:
  “Jobs actually transform after you start … demands on the business change every day.” — Dr. Ben Zweig [14:47]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:04–04:02: S&P 500 evolution, Social Security outlook, inflation & labor market check-in
• 05:31–07:32: Case study on Meta’s hiring and lessons for investors
• 07:32–11:10: Four main workforce data types explained
• 11:10–14:01: Workforce analysis from the perspective of the employee/job seeker
• 14:01–17:58: Shortcomings of job descriptions, dynamic job roles, management, and AI’s impact

Closing Takeaways

• Investors can gain a significant edge by monitoring industry and company-specific workforce trends.
• Company job postings, employee reviews, and pay data are rich, underutilized sources for both investors and job seekers.
• The labor market and individual roles are more dynamic and transparent than ever; understanding these changes is critical for both career and investment success.

To hear more, including the full interview with Dr. Ben Zweig, visit Motley Fool Conversations on YouTube.