Soft skills are the new power skills

For decades, the archetypal C-suite executive stood tall as a domineering figure, leading from a distant corner office. Interpersonal skills - literally labeled "soft skills" - were seen as expendable on the corporate ladder.

However, a growing body of research shows that company leaders who exhibit communication, flexibility and compassion help teams collaborate more effectively, motivate workforces and retain employees. As a result, modern paradigms are shifting to reframe these "soft skills" as highly coveted "power skills" among today's top leaders.

"Being a good leader is being a good human," said Tony Kong, associate professor of organizational leadership and informational analytics at Leeds Business School. "When a leader can show tenderness, sympathy and compassion, especially in times of crisis and uncertainty, it can trigger employees' feelings of gratitude and make them want to go above and beyond."

The stress and upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic underscored the need for empathetic leaders and a more nurturing workplace culture, Kong said. And today, corporate downsizing and emerging technologies further compound that need. According to the World Economic Forum's 2023 Future of Jobs Report, skills like creativity, resilience, flexibility, self-awareness and empathy will be among the most valued over the next five years.

Kong, also the faculty director of Leeds' leadership certificate, and David Hekman, associate professor of organizational leadership and information analytics, share more research-backed insights about the benefits of empathy and humility in company leadership and why leaders at all levels need to embody these skills.

The surprising power of humility

By acknowledging their mistakes, highlighting others' strengths and exhibiting a learning mindset, leaders cultivate a workplace culture oriented toward growth.

"Humility in leadership benefits teams, individuals and entire organizations," Hekman said. "It helps people experience more psychological freedom, authenticity, job satisfaction, improved team performance and motivation."

Hekman studies how leader humility influences team performance. One such study, published in the Academy of Management Journal in 2016, examined the operations of 84 laboratory teams and 77 health care teams. It revealed that when leaders exercise humility, it can effectively propagate throughout a team.

"Humility spreads - it's contagious," Hekman said. "It enhances feelings of safety, so you can feel safe speaking up to your boss. It reduces turnover and results in a more motivated workforce."

Although it's clear that leader humility benefits teams and organizations, there is a widespread belief that humility may hinder leaders from advancing through the corporate ranks.

However, Hekman's recent research indicates that there is a "humble route" to career advancement.

"Conventional wisdom is that you've got to be Machiavellian and self-promote and bully to rise to the top, but humility is also a catalyst for leadership success," said Hekman, who co-authored a study on humility and career advancement that was published in the January 2024 edition of the Journal of Human Resource Management.

Informal career mentoring, which helps cultivate a network of loyal followers, is key to humble leader advancement. "It gives them status in the organization because passing on skills, tips and tricks builds up a lot of social capital," Hekman said. "So they build this network of people who end up being an army of very talented, very motivated, trusting people, which is unbeatable." The elevated status often leads to promotions.

Warmth in the workplace

Interpersonal warmth is also crucial in fostering a positive workplace culture, Kong's research shows. Employees are more likely to be engaged and motivated when a leader is understanding and supportive. Similarly, leaders who convey "warmth" can build trust with their direct reports, fostering open communication and acceptance of new ideas.

Warm and empathetic leaders can also help lessen employees' negative work stress. According to a study published in April 2023 in the Academy of Management Journal and co-authored by Kong, whether an employee sees a work stressor as a challenge or threat hinges on how they view their direct manager.

Based on two surveys of more than 250 employee-leader pairs in 234 companies and organizations in more than 40 industries in China, researchers found that employees view the prospect of performance-based pay raises positively when they view their manager as competent and warm.

Capable and supportive leaders create fulfilling work environments, inspiring employees to rise to the challenge with increased work engagement and performance.

On the other hand, "If my leader is cold, untrustworthy, unfriendly and unsupportive, then I'll perceive pay for performance as a threat," Kong said. "I'll be stressed and withdraw from my work, maybe coming to work late and leaving early. I will perform worse because I'm disengaged."

Kong's research also shows the importance of prioritizing employees' psychological needs during a crisis. A 2021 study he co-authored, published in the Journal of Positive Psychology, surveyed employees during the peak of the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. It found that when supervisors acknowledged their employees' suffering and provided emotional support and flexibility, it improved relationships and evoked gratitude among their reports. It also helped employees adapt and increased their engagement at work.

The study underscores why prioritizing human connection is essential for a positive work culture, Kong said.

"When a leader shows empathy, people appreciate it," Kong said. "They actually do more even though it's not a requirement."

A cornerstone for inclusion

Empathy can help managers lead with inclusivity and better understand others' perspectives and worldviews.

According to a 2021 survey by Catalyst, employees across different genders and racial groups feel more valued and respected while working with an empathetic leader compared to less empathetic ones.

Kong said it's also important for leaders to consider diversity in a wider context.

"Diversity is very complex, but often we fixate our attention on demographics and forget that people have different perspectives, different backgrounds and different ideologies," said Kong, who teaches a module on managing diversity in Leeds' Executive Leadership Program.

"Instead of using demographics as a proxy, why don't we try to better understand people's perspectives, worldviews and experiences? That's using empathy to understand and respect others' points of view."

Empathetic leaders value diverse perspectives and create a culture of respect, acceptance and unity, which helps foster a sense of community among employees.

"Over time, I think practicing empathy will not only give you emotional talent, but also cultural intelligence," said Kong.

Powering up "soft skills"

Empathy and emotional intelligence are hard to quantify, and they're often overlooked when it comes to hiring, according to Kong.

"It's not a luxury for leaders to have empathy. It is a necessity," said Kong. "But oftentimes, we promote leaders in terms of technical skills. And sometimes we find that they don't understand people. They only understand what they do, but they don't understand who they're working with."

Kong explained that companies often prioritize short-term performance over long-term culture building because return on investment (ROI) is not attached to these relationship-building skills. "We need to shift the thinking about who we hire, who we promote and what kind of culture we want," he said.

Hekman and Kong believe companies should implement systems that promote and cultivate "power skills." For example, human resources departments can work with companies' leadership to promote mentoring programs, create systems that provide transparency, and facilitate leadership training programs that contribute to career success and organizational growth.

Meanwhile, company leaders at any level should focus on providing quality feedback to employees more often, Kong said. "Providing good feedback is a skill set. It's a leadership skill that requires empathy," he said.

"A lot of times leaders do not know how to give feedback, but employees crave it for self-growth," he added. "Try to frame feedback sessions as more constructive and focus on strengths instead of limitations. Take perspective and try to put the right people in the right positions according to their strengths."

This shifting emphasis promises lasting repercussions - especially as companies integrate AI technology into their operations. According to recent research, employers will increasingly value these "power skills" that enhance human interactions in the AI age.

"We don't know what is going to happen, but my hunch is that our human advantage is going to be our [interpersonal] skills," Hekman said.

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Illustrations by Ben Kircher

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