BUSINESS STRATEGY
LEADERS NEED TO PRIORITISE SOFT SKILLS AND ENABLE HUMAN SUSTAINABILITY IN THE WORKPLACE AND AI IS THE KEY TO EXPEDITING THIS PROCESS . the mainstream . At first , people had difficulty grasping the concept of the cell phone and its potential uses . Many were sceptical or unsure about the practicality and benefits of this new communication technology . People were accustomed to existing modes of communication , such as landline phones and beepers . Some individuals were concerned about the privacy implications of the cell phone , fearing that their conversations could be easily overheard . There was resistance to adopting a new and unfamiliar technology , as it required a shift in behaviour and communication habits . enable human sustainability in the workplace and AI is the key to expediting this process .
Targeted and deliberate , rather than broad and wide
The workplace has changed . The ability to perform work remotely , employee growth expectations and software automation created a workplace where managers are out of touch with their teams . Agile development processes and applications , such as Jira and Monday . com , can manage the day-to-day tasks of team members better than a manager ever could . It ’ s not about WHAT people are working on anymore ; it ’ s about HOW they work . Managers are completely unprepared to manage soft skills such as promoting problem solving or having a team think analytically about the big picture .
Seckin Secilmis , CEO and Founder , 5fn
Today , the cell phone has become an indispensable part of daily lives . Just as cell phones eventually overcame these challenges to become integral to communication , AI has the potential to transform leadership by enhancing soft skills and promoting human sustainability in the workplace . However , we must first overcome initial scepticism and fear about AI to gain its advantages .
The status quo
Research findings from Harvard University , the Carnegie Foundation and the Stanford Research Center collectively found that 85 % of job success is attributed to soft skills , and only 15 % is attributed to technical skills . While one might expect leaders to prioritise soft skills accordingly , evidence contradicts this assumption . Global estimates put employee engagement at only 36 %, company turnover rates in some industries exceed 50 % and manager burnout rates surpass 50 %, indicating a lack of emphasis on soft skills by leaders .
Incorporating AI into management practices will be key to bridging the soft skills gap faced by leaders . Growing team performance will be through motivation , support and promoting problem solving skills , just to name a few . For instance , the process of gathering information on how a person is doing consumed a significant amount of time for managers . AI applications can analyse several parameters and applications in the background within seconds to provide a manager with an assessment of where an employee needs to grow so that interactions with employees are fruitful . As a result , managers can focus on development rather than gathering information . Where one individual might need help with problem solving , another may need to improve their self-awareness . AI can piece together a curated , bespoke growth and development plan for each team member so that leaders can provide feedback that is relevant to each person , maintaining the human touch and connection still needed in the workplace .
Traditionally , leaders employed methods such as walking around the office and engaging in hallway conversations to manage their teams . They used productivity metrics such as number of tasks completed per day , phone call quotas or number of hours worked . The pandemic and hybrid work rendered these approaches obsolete , catching some leaders off guard . Rather than adapting to the evolving landscape , some leaders seemed to wait for a ‘ return to normal ’ that never materialised . In the interim , employees embraced the digitisation of the workforce . Low employee engagement , high turnover rates and high burnout rates all indicate our management practices need to evolve to reflect the new normal . Leaders need to prioritise soft skills and
Furthermore , delivering specific and pertinent development feedback accelerates the
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