IT Trauma Is a Leadership Problem: Perspectives from Thrive-IT Founder D.J. Eshelman

The tech world thrives on uptime, predictability, and measurable outcomes. However, it's often at the expense of the people who keep it running. Engineers, architects, and operations teams absorb the impact of outages, reorganizations, and layoffs in ways that don't show up on dashboards. Think sleepless nights, eroded identity, and the creeping fear that the next disruption might be the breaking point. D.J. Eshelman, a long-time IT practitioner, founder of Thrive-IT, Independent Executive Director in Maxwell Leadership, and author, believes this psychological toll is deeply tied to how organizations lead through change.

Eshelman noticed a recurring pattern: structural and leadership failures consistently produced human harm. Waves of layoffs have hit technical teams hard, often blamed on emerging technologies like AI. A deeper look reveals a more complex picture. Companies cut jobs for varied reasons, and the narrative that "tech replaced these roles" oversimplifies the issue.

"This cycle mirrors the anxiety of the early 2010s, when cloud infrastructure disrupted legacy roles," Eshelman shares. "The pattern of new tech, shifting job descriptions, and widespread fear is repeating, but I believe the root cause remains how teams are led."

When organizations reorganize or automate without strengthening systems and processes, the burden of change falls on production teams. Poor decision frameworks, unclear accountability, and leaders promoted for technical skill rather than people management create environments where small issues escalate into major problems.

These problems lead to employee stress. Data shows rising suicide rates among working-age adults, with job stress, insecurity, and weak supervisory support as contributing factors. "IT roles don't top the risk charts, but that doesn't mean tech professionals are immune. Environments that isolate, blame, or neglect them can lead to burnout and long-term career damage," Eshelman states.

It's worth noting that employee stress is also framed as an organizational risk. Chronic stress reduces productivity, increases errors, and accelerates attrition. Part of the problem is that many new managers are not receiving formal training, and organizations often promote top contributors without equipping them to lead.

Team leads often inherit employees who carry PTSD from previous roles. When leaders are stressed or unprepared for this challenge, they unknowingly cause additional trauma. Panic breeds panic, and dysfunction spreads. The result is a system that perpetuates the very problems it aims to fix.

Eshelman believes that trauma from tech-driven change can become a strategic advantage if leaders invest early in human systems. He encourages technologists to reframe disruptions, such as layoffs or public failures, as opportunities to reassess strengths, build networks, and develop enduring skills. He shares his own story. "After a mid-career layoff, I pivoted to consulting and coaching. It's where I found greater satisfaction and success," he says.

For organizations, Eshelman offers two key prescriptions. First, stop worrying about people wanting to leave, but create an environment where they choose to stay. Eshelman agrees with Simon Sinek when he says, "If we want people to love their work and be loyal employees, we have to invest in human skills just as much as we invest in hard skills." Second, treat leadership development as a system, not a one-off training event.

His programs reflect this logic. Bespoke coaching is paired with scalable development for everyday leaders, such as team leads and project managers. Tools, including those from John Maxwell Leadership, include DISC communication assessments, 360-degree feedback, and quarterly growth plans, which can turn coaching into measurable change.

Eshelman also applies leadership principles to technical challenges. Much of what's labeled "technical debt" stems from unmanaged handoffs, unclear ownership, and leaders who conflate control with execution. By aligning roles with strengths, improving delegation, and introducing small leadership rituals, teams can reduce friction and regain capacity.

For leaders seeking to break the trauma cycle, Eshelman recommends starting with candid conversations about risk and expectations, investing in behavioral assessments and structured feedback, and creating micro-development plans for frontline leaders. "Mistakes should be treated as learning data, not moral failures," he stresses. "For individual contributors, I advise strengthening relationships before they're needed, maintaining a balanced skill portfolio, and viewing transitions as opportunities for growth."

Eshelman is also writing an IT leadership-themed novel, Outage, which dramatizes these dynamics in a high-pressure service environment. It illustrates how small, strategic leadership investments can transform a crisis into resilience.

Ultimately, D.J. Eshelman believes that technology will keep evolving, but organizations that treat people as interchangeable parts will continue to pay the price. The alternative, intentional leadership development and pragmatic technical stewardship, isn't only humane but profitable. Leaders who choose this path don't eliminate risk, but they reshape the system so that risk doesn't become personal trauma for the people who keep it running.