The $160 Billion Problem AI Can’t Solve

Welcome to EQ-AI, where emotional intelligence meets artificial intelligence to create long-term success.

The Hidden Crisis in Your Office Right Now

Here’s a number that should terrify every business leader: $160 billion. 

That’s how much U.S. companies lose every single year due to lack of soft skills—poor communication, failed collaboration, and employees walking out the door because they don’t feel heard.

While everyone’s racing to implement AI agents, chatbots, and automation, there’s an irony unfolding that nobody’s talking about: The more we automate technical tasks, the more valuable human skills become.

AI isn’t replacing emotional intelligence. It’s demanding more of it.

Why Doctors Will Need More Empathy, Not Less

Recent research shows something fascinating. The professions we thought were “safe” from AI such as doctors, lawyers, programmers aren’t being protected by their technical knowledge anymore. AI already outperforms experts on purely technical tasks.

What’s keeping humans irreplaceable? Empathy. Trust. Strategic thinking.

A surgeon can have AI analyse scans with superhuman accuracy, but the patient still needs someone to hold their hand and explain what’s happening in human terms. A lawyer can use AI to draft contracts, but clients still need someone who understands the emotional stakes of their divorce or business deal.

The technical work becomes table stakes. The human connection becomes the differentiator.

The Future Belongs to “Collaborative Intelligence”

Here’s where it gets interesting for your career and your company.

Harvard Business Review studied 1,500 firms and found that companies automating just to cut workforce costs saw only short-term gains. The real winners? Companies that created collaborative intelligence where humans and AI enhance each other’s strengths.

Think of it like this:

• AI handles: Data processing, pattern recognition, repetitive tasks, speed

• Humans handle: Judgment calls, ethical decisions, creative leaps, relationship building

To work effectively with AI, you need higher emotional intelligence, not lower.

You need to:

• Train AI systems (which requires patience and teaching skills)

• Explain AI outputs to stakeholders (translation + empathy)

• Make ethical decisions about when to trust AI vs human judgment

• Manage hybrid teams where some “colleagues” are algorithms

The Skills That Matter in 2025 (And Beyond)

According to recent workplace studies, these EQ skills are now ranking in the top 10 most coveted by employers:

1. Self-awareness - Understanding your emotional triggers when AI disagrees with you

2. Empathy - Connecting with customers/colleagues in ways AI can’t replicate

3. Active listening - Hearing what’s not being said in Slack messages and Zoom

4. Motivation - Staying driven when AI makes your old role obsolete

5. Relationship management - Building trust in increasingly remote, AI-mediated workplaces

Notice something? These aren’t skills AI can automate. They’re amplified by the gaps AI creates.

Your Action Plan: Building EQ in an AI World

This week, try this:

1. Audit your last 10 work interactions. How many required pure technical knowledge vs. emotional intelligence? You might be surprised.

2. Have one “human-first” conversation. Pick a colleague or client. Skip the efficiency. Ask how they’re really doing. Listen without problem-solving.

3. Teach AI something. Use ChatGPT or Claude for a work task. Notice how much patience, clarity, and iteration it takes. That’s training your “collaborative intelligence” muscle.

4. Map your irreplaceability. List your daily tasks. Circle the ones AI could do. Star the ones requiring empathy, judgment, or relationship capital. That’s your future job description.

The Bottom Line

AI is not the threat to your career. Being technically skilled without emotional intelligence is.

The professionals thriving in 2025 and beyond aren’t fighting AI. They’re dancing with it. They’re letting AI handle the technical heavy lifting while they focus on the messy, complex, deeply human work of building trust, inspiring teams, and making ethical calls in grey areas.

The future isn’t Human vs AI.

It’s Human + AI.

And the glue that holds that partnership together? Your emotional intelligence.

What’s one EQ skill you’re developing this year to thrive alongside AI? Hit reply, I read every response. Stay human, James Absalom

P.S. Next week, we’re diving into “Why AI Therapy Bots Are Booming (And What That Tells Us About the Loneliness Epidemic).”

If you know someone who’d benefit from this conversation, forward them this email. EQ-AI | Where Emotional Intelligence Meets Artificial Intelligence

Want to Learn More?

We’re constantly tracking supply chain talent trends through our SPEED model — a data-augmented, human-led framework for executive search.

If you’re building the next generation of supply chain leadership, let’s talk.

Reply here or reach out directly to James Absalom, Chief Commercial Officer - International