How much do failing companies and countries have in common? In this episode of The Lonely Office, we follow Lianna, a young attorney watching her dream of partnership fade away as her firm’s leadership hoards profits and power.

Inspired by the Nobel Prize-winning book Why Nations Fail, we explore how the "extractive policies" that doom nations—concentrating wealth and power in the hands of a few—also plague companies. From Blockbuster's $50M Netflix blunder to today's imploding startups, we examine how resistance to change, decision-making concentrated in the hands of the CEO and close executives, and a lack of organizational justice—such as undeserved promotions—can collectively pave the way for spectacular collapses.