Ep 06: Embracing the Future: Artificial Intelligence and Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace

The Emotional Intelli-Gents Podcast: Navigating Leadership with Emotional intelligence

In this episode of the Emotional Intelli-Gents Podcast we focus on a topic that has been dominating the international tech conversation recently by changing the way people live and work. What we are referring to is artificial intelligence technology platforms like ChatGPT and Midjourney. Platforms like these, and others, have undoubtedly taken the world by storm.

Without question, there is major utility in products and platforms such as ChatGPT. We also know the forthcoming generation of AI advancements will eclipse what we have available today. Specifically, the episode will focus on how AI technology, once fully developed and relied on, could bolster a leader’s ability to lead in an emotionally intelligent way. We will also explore the alternative, of how AI technology may hinder a leader’s ability to lead with EQ.
The episode will begin by sharing a very basic explanation of the current state of AI. We define the differences between narrow AI and general AI. Narrow AI is what we see available today in the marketplace with programs like ChatGPT. Narrow AI is designed to analyze a large mass of data available to it and complete tasks the tool is directed to complete. General AI, on the other hand, is still a work in progress and is being developed as we speak. General AI is distinct in that it has the ability to apply reasoning and will be able to replicate human intelligence. Narrow AI tools do not have the capacity to replace humans in the workplace at scale, but will act more as a complement to the current workforce, allowing us all to leave the menial tasks to AI and focus on higher value work.
One cross-section of AI and EQ we explore in great detail in the episode, are tools, currently in development, that will be able to provide data on the emotions of specific individuals employed by an organization. AI tools will have the ability to use natural language processing (NLP), facial and body language recognition, and tone analysis to complete sentiment analyses of individuals. The sentiment analysis will then draw conclusions about an individual’s level of engagement or general mood towards work and provide feedback to leaders.
In this episode, we discuss the pros and cons of such technology eventually taking hold. There are arguments to be made on both sides. For starters, this type of AI technology can create ethical or privacy concerns for individuals. It can also cause leaders to rely too heavily on the tool’s assessment of an individual’s emotions, rather than relying on critical human leadership skills like intuition and empathy to draw similar conclusions.
On the flip side, there is an argument that more information, whether derived through human to human interaction, or AI tools, is a good thing. For companies, looking to implement more policies to better emotionally support their workforce, this type of data can be invaluable. Sentiment data, if collected responsibly can have a real impact on bridging the gap between how employees are feeling at work, and how they want to feel at work.
EP06, in its entirety, tackles a very relevant topic of AI and its inevitable downstream implications for all of us. Please join us by listening in and giving us your feedback. Do you see value in AI tools giving businesses insights on their team’s emotional state? How will this impact leader’s ability to lead with emotional intelligence?
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