The Importance of Emotional Intelligence in AI Workspaces

I'm knee deep this week putting the finishing touches on my new Udemy course on "AI for People Managers: Lead with confidence in an AI-enabled workplace". After working with hundreds of managers cautiously navigating AI integration, here's what I've learned: the future belongs to leaders who can thoughtfully blend AI capabilities with genuine human wisdom, connection, and compassion. Your people don't need you to be the AI expert in the room; they need you to be authentic, caring, and completely committed to their success. No technology can replicate that. And no technology SHOULD. The managers who are absolutely thriving aren't necessarily the most tech-savvy ones. They're the leaders who understand how to use AI strategically to amplify their existing strengths while keeping clear boundaries around what must stay authentically human: building trust, navigating emotions, making tough ethical calls, having meaningful conversations, and inspiring people to bring their best work. Here's the most important takeaway: as AI handles more routine tasks, your human leadership skills become MORE valuable, not less. The economic value of emotional intelligence, empathy, and relationship building skyrockets when machines take over the mundane stuff. Here are 7 principles for leading humans in an AI-enabled world: 1. Use AI to create more space for real human connection, not to avoid it 2. Don't let AI handle sensitive emotions, ethical decisions, or trust-building moments 3. Be transparent about your AI experiments while emphasizing that human judgment (that's you, my friend) drives your decisions 4. Help your people develop uniquely human skills that complement rather than compete with technology. (Let me know how I can help. This is my jam.) 5. Own your strategic decisions completely. Don't hide behind AI recommendations when things get tough 6. Build psychological safety so people feel supported through technological change, not threatened by it 7. Remember your core job hasn't changed. You're still in charge of helping people do their best work and grow in their careers AI is just a powerful new tool to help you do that job better, and to help your people do theirs better. Make sure it's the REAL you showing up as the leader you are. #AI #coaching #managers

Here’s an uncomfortable truth most experimenters don’t want to hear. . . In the impending AI era, success will no longer be defined by how many A/B tests you’ve won. Instead, real wins will be from people who can outperform AI in: ✅ Creating meaningful human connections ✅ Understanding human emotions, at a deep level ✅ Empathizing with audiences' true needs, wants, and desires True success will become all about taking a human-centric approach! Which means: ⚡ Listening to customers will become far more valuable than the ability to analyze and crunch data ⚡ Understanding people will become far more valuable than knowing how to use the latest experimentation tools and platforms ⚡ Creating authentic connections, through meaningful conversations, will solve far more problems than AI ever will The most successful experimenters won't be the most technically advanced-- they’ll be the most human-focussed. The biggest wins won't come from better algorithms, but rather, from deeper understanding of users and our ability to relate to them. To stay relevant and ahead: 🛑 Stop trying to outsmart AI 🟢 Start focusing on what makes you uniquely human Leverage this advantage. By bridging the gap between technology and humanity, you can create a huge stepping stone to success. Rather than focussing on AI, it's time to start thinking about EI (emotional intelligence). What are your thoughts on this perspective? Share your comments below ⬇️

AWS CEO, Matt Garman, recently said some insightful things in a CNBC interview about what skills are needed to succeed in the AI age. Surprisingly, he said that you don't need a machine learning degree or other highly technical skills to succeed in the near future. Instead, Matt emphasized the importance of "soft" (aka human) skills. These include 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 (which requires 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘆 and 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲). In fact, these are the skills he advises his own high school-aged child to focus on developing. The World Economic Forum agrees. In their Future of Jobs Report 2025, they listed human skills (vs. technical skills) as 8 of the top 10 core skills need for success today. These include: 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗳𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆; 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴; 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲; 𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀; 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴; 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴; 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁; 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲. (The other 2 are analytical thinking and technological literacy.) Adaptability is a particularly important skill because things are changing so rapidly. We need to learn not only new technologies, but in many cases, completely new ways of working. Add to this the coming reality that AI will transition from being a 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹 to a 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 (though hopefully not your boss). As I've been saying for a while, in a world where everything that 𝘤𝘢𝘯 be automated 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 be automated, these emotional-social skills are more important than ever. As AI becomes ubiquitous, knowing how to use it will be like knowing how to use a spreadsheet or touch type (both of which were highly specialized skills at one point). AI skills will be table stakes; human skills will be the differentiator. Cultivating nontechnical skills is not a "nice to have"; it's mission-critical for our careers, our leadership, and our businesses. As Matt said, "People skills are going to continue to be super important for a long time." What skills do you think will be critical for success in our AI-powered future? Please share in the comments.