We, humans, are social creatures. In ancient times, our survival depended on being part of a community.

For centuries, even millennia, power in these communities was bestowed upon individuals who possessed material goods; first it was land and cattle; later on, after the industrial revolution, owning machinery and factories was likely to make the owner a powerful person.

It was only very recently that humans entered the “knowledge economy.” All of which are brought up in a culture that strongly believes that “knowledge is power.” To be powerful and successful, we need knowledge. The more knowledge we have, the more powerful we may become.

In this worldview, leadership skills were usually divided into hard and soft skills. Hard skills are the technical ones, the ones that will give you data and information and will allow you to make sense of it. Then there are soft skills like communication, negotiation, conflict resolution and many more. Soft skills were useful but it was hard skills that gave the competitive advantage. 

Our education systems are mostly based on acquiring hard and technical skills.

However, digital technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) are changing the playfield. Nowadays, anybody with a smartphone and an internet connection has access to more data than they can possibly make sense of. Data and information have become a commodity. Having more information does not mean having more power. It can even be quite the opposite: how can you differentiate what is true from what is false (the infamous “fake news”)? Even if all your data is from reliable sources, how can you possibly make sense of such a huge volume of information and use it to your or your company’s advantage?

A new paradigm is emerging to address this. In our digital and hyper connected world, hard and technical skills are now a given. As data and information have become a commodity, a person´s competitive advantage is not determined by how much data and information they have or can gather. The competitive advantage now lies in the “soft skills.” A person's ability to tell a story based on data, to communicate their message powerfully and effectively in an extremely noisy world —to inspire individuals to come together and create high performance teams that can bring that vision into reality — is what makes a difference. I like changing the name from “soft skills” to “POWER SKILLS” as these skills are the superpowers in the new AI-enabled landscape. They are essential in order to truly thrive in our digital world.

The New Power Skills

The IOC EMEA community gathered as part of our virtual EMEA Roundtable—a peer-based, marketing-free space for coaching professionals across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa to explore coaching concepts, share real-world applications, and build community. During this session, we co-created a map of the new power skills, both from a leader’s and an executive coach’s point of view.

The questions we reflected on were:

What are the new skills executives need?

What skills will be replaced by AI, what skills need to be refined to remain relevant?What skills do we, executive coaches, need to develop to support executive leaders?

Here are the answers we co-created: 

1. Ethical discernment: understanding the ethical implications of AI and other technologies is crucial. It requires a deep commitment to integrity, transparency, and accountability. Leaders must question not just what can be done, but what also should be done, ensuring that technological advancements align with ethical standards and societal values.

2. Emotional intelligence and resilience: The current speed and depth of change creates great anxiety. Emotional intelligence helps leaders manage their own emotions and understand those of others to foster a supportive and productive environment. Resilience helps them adapt to continuous change without losing sight of their goals. These skills enable leaders to maintain calm under pressure, inspire their teams, and navigate the uncertainties and anxieties that come with technological disruptions.

3. Manage uncertainty and become adept at decision-making in complexity: Human brains, having evolved to keep us alive, seek safety and feel at ease with predictability and certainty. However, the current environment demands that leaders are able flexible and willing to pivot as new information emerges to make sound decisions amidst ambiguity and uncertainty. 

4. Challenge information overload: Leaders must develop skills to differentiate what is important and what is only noise. They need to be able to focus on what is relevant and truly matters. This includes critical thinking to evaluate the relevance and reliability of information, as well as strategic thinking to prioritize tasks and objectives. 

5. Human-centric leadership: Leaders should focus on prioritizing human needs and well-being, fostering a culture of inclusiveness, and collaboration. By valuing and enhancing human relationships, they can create psychologically safe environments where individuals feel appreciated and motivated, leading to higher levels of engagement and productivity.

6. Ask better questions:  It is vital for leaders to be able to ask insightful and probing questions that help gain new insights, challenge assumptions, and foster innovation. It is only with curiosity and a questioning mindset that leaders can drive continuous learning and improvement, ensuring their organizations stay ahead in a rapidly changing digital world.

7. Systemic and somatic thinking:  Neuroscience is continuously making new discoveries on how important the connection between the body and the brain is in areas such as information gathering, data processing and decision making. Leaders can benefit from incorporating all the information coming from their somatic knowledge and system knowledge. These previously untapped sources are being proved as important and reliable to provide vital information.

8. Critical thinking: We live in a noisy world with information overload. AI can provide an answer to any question that we may pose. However, is it the correct answer? Moreover, is it the best answer for me and for my business? The ability to analyse objectively, recognize biases and develop a personal view point becomes vital to be able to develop a personal point of view and make the best decisions for a given context. 

9. Reimagine human skills: Human interactions, psychological safety, empathy, effective communication, listening, having difficult conversations are skills that improve human relationships and become vital in a context where data is just one prompt away.

10. Contextualize the knowledge we have: Data is only one prompt away and AI can provide an answer to almost any question. We need to contextualize to ensure this answer is the most appropriate for our needs. The context becomes crucial to differentiate what is relevant and actionable and what is not.  Leaders need to bring context back, which involves interpreting data within the framework of their organizational goals and the broader landscape. 

11. Data literacy versus data fluency: Data fluency involves technical proficiency with data. Data literacy goes deeper and emphasizes understanding and using data effectively to make informed decisions. Leaders need to develop a strong foundation in data literacy, which will enable them to interpret and leverage data insights without necessarily being data experts. This skill empowers leaders to ask the right questions and make data-driven decisions that align with their strategic objectives.

12. Prioritize: We live in the “economy of attention,” where the amount of data can be overwhelming. Prioritization is vital to identify what needs to be done, what should be known, and what is truly important. It becomes a critical skill for leaders. By prioritizing effectively, they can focus their efforts, ensuring that their time and resources are used efficiently.

Conclusion

Just as the world and the business landscape are changing rapidly in the digital era, leadership —and the skills leaders need—are evolving just as quickly. The traditional dichotomy between hard and soft skills is shifting and must continue to evolve, with power skills emerging as the critical element for effective leadership in an AI-powered world. These power skills, ranging from ethical discernment to data literacy, are essential for navigating the complexities and uncertainties of the digital age.

For executive coaches, this transformation presents both a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge is that we need to embrace the new skill sets and incorporate them into our coaching practices if we want to effectively support leaders in developing them. When we do this, we enhance the impact of our coaching and, additionally, we are well equipped to accompany our clients in their journey, navigating the complexities of the digital age.

The opportunity, however, is even more exciting. Coaching—particularly non-directive coaching—has never been about teaching hard skills or telling clients what to do. It is about creating a safe space for clients to think deeply, access their own resources, and find their own solutions to their unique challenges. Never before has the coaching framework been so vital as it is for the development of power skills. Which skills clients need to acquire, how they will embody and display them, and what particular flavor they adopt to match their values, preferences, and worldviews—these are questions ideally suited to be explored within a coaching relationship. Never before have executive coaches had such a broad and impactful playing field to support their clients!

As coaches, we have the unique opportunity to rise to the occasion. Our role has never been more critical. The potential to create a positive impact—both for our clients and for society at large—has never been greater. If we endeavor to cultivate these power skills within ourselves and our clients, we will not only help them navigate the complexities of the digital era but also contribute to shaping a new generation of leaders equipped to thrive in the age of AI.