Rejected Or Selected

Amy Chokchai is a Cyber Security lecturer at South Metropolitan TAFE in Western Australia. She is also a published author and is currently undertaking her doctoral candidacy into the study of AI's impact on human behaviour at an organisational level.

This week's episode of Rejected or Selected focuses on the central points underpinning Amy's research in this area and the visible impacts in today's workplace related to the impact of integrated AI platforms.

And of course, all the usual banter and lighthearted commentary from Deany and Simon to ensure we don't take all of this too seriously.

You can also read some of Amy's published works here:

Curriculum Revolution: https://amzn.asia/d/0gHeoX1r

Women Who Rise: https://amzn.asia/d/05EdvhFa

You can find Amy here on LinkedIn Amy Chokchai | LinkedIn and if you'd like to support her or be a part of her doctoral research, please feel free to contact her

 It is July 2026, and the tech sector has officially reached peak panic. Over 200,000 workers have been laid off this year as Big Tech pivots entirely to AI. But here is the hilariously toxic twist: companies are realizing their new AI agents are hallucinating data, and they are quietly trying to rehire the humans they fired three months ago. It’s the 'Great AI Layoff Boomerang'

Fair or unfair? Let’s talk about it.

Plus, some big carrot energy.

Welcome to After Dark. The late-night, alcoholic version of Rejected or Selected. An honest conversation about the absurdity of modern work life.

In our first ever live episode, Simon and Deany cover the emotional gut-punch of losing your work bestie, why "we're like a family here" is one of the most manipulative phrases in corporate culture, a real story about startup equity that was wiped out in a buyout nobody read the fine print for, and the Karl Stefanovic sacking (was there really anything up for) debate. Plus a rapid-fire This or That that reveals exactly what kind of people (employees) we both are.

Recorded live, screwdriver and all.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction and technical difficulties

09:57 Office chit chat: how much is too much?

20:09 Work besties and their impact

30:02 The work family concept: red flag or not?

33:34 The impact of family dynamics in business

36:01 Redundancies and employee equity

39:17 Controversial figures in media

43:10 The ethics of media representation

47:49 Political ideologies and employment

51:47 Passion projects vs. profit

54:14 Rapid fire: work preferences

🎙️ Rejected or Selected | rejectedorselected.riverside.com

📩 100% Anonymous work confessions: https://forms.gle/tUWS55GbDuNDNgFr9

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this episode are the hosts' own and represent their personal opinions, not those of any employer or organisation. This episode discusses public figures and media events based on publicly available information, nothing here constitutes legal fact or formal accusation. We encourage you to read widely and form your own opinions and beliefs.

Branding and strategy nerds come forth, because we have a special treat for you in our 10th episode for 2026. Recruitment Marketing and Communications Business Partner, Mark Pearce from MPI, joins us to talk about his own career journey and why he invests so heavily in his marketing education.

In what was a great follow up to Episode 9, Mark continues the discussion about brand and strategy and where he thinks the state of recruitment advertising is in Australia today. Does the current method of copying and pasting ads to a job board hold up?

Find out more in this week's bumper episode with Mark Pearce.

You can follow Mark here Mark Pearce 🔍🖊️ | LinkedIn

Deany here Deany Jaghdour | LinkedIn

And Simon here Simon Carabetta | LinkedIn

Podcast YouTube channel here (523) Rejected Or Selected Podcast - YouTube

A rant-filled episode where Deany and Simon discuss the misalignment between a company's brand and their actions. Plus, Deany discusses negative candidate experiences while Simon debates the merits of culture over strategy in 2026.

Special guests: A bunch of mosquitos in Deany's house.

As promised, the link to Mark Pearce's LinkedIn post about the job ad AI prompt https://www.linkedin.com/posts/markpearcemarketing_250andcounting-brainrot-activity-7465676677071794176-0NYv?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAABY0KVoBJejeR8sKaqhhcYk9QGT_TYxUDl8

Another unplanned, unscripted, (mostly) unedited episode of RoS this week - it's Unplugged 2.

Listen in as Deany and Simon discuss everything in and around their work lives including what's going on personally: Did Simon flatline in the emergency ward? What interesting and somewhat racist encounter did Deany have in Paris? How can someone go 44 years of their life without realising they have dual citizenship?

It's all here and more in this week's unplugged episode of Rejected or Selected.

We have another special guest on Rejected or Selected and this week they don't hold back! Daisy Wong joins us to discuss her personal journey and career, from project coordination to now Cyber Culture and Awareness specialist, Daisy has dealt with plenty of bullshit over the years, and she enjoys telling us all about it.

From being treated like she's a rare exotic animal, to being undermined by previous bosses and co-workers, Daisy gives us insight as to just what it's like living with a disability in Corporate Australia.

A true master at what he does, Shil Shanghavi is one of the world's most prolific public speakers and public speaking coaches. In our 6th episode for 2026 and first show with a guest for this year, Shil speaks authentically and genuinely about his journey from a 10 year old with a stutter and a dream to stages all around the world where he has spoken with leaders and people from all walks of life.

Deany and Simon discuss Shil's mastery of public speaking, the way he manages his stutter and his imposter syndrome, and his love for Manchester United.

You can find out more about Shil here www.shilshanghavi.com and you can also watch the documentary film made about him right here https://youtu.be/O73eDeg4-VY?si=5XRpkkUvsDO7G02C

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's finally come to this, our first unplanned, unscripted and "unplugged" (I mean, what even is "unplugged" these days, we're not Nirvana, this isn't Madison Square Garden, and it's not 1994)

Well, if you managed to ignore all of that, then Deany and Simon have a treat for you as our raw conversation takes a turn from LinkedIn algorithms, enshittification, and how people with ADHD are propping up the digital economy. There's something for (almost) everyone in this week's edition and our first ever unplugged episode of Rejected or Selected.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.