Despite acknowledging their importance, most organizations fail to systematically measure, reward, or invest in collaborative skills. These skills are often the first budget cut in a downturn and are devalued by the term 'soft skills,' which originated from a US Army classification distinguishing them from work with 'hard' machinery.
The currency for career success is shifting from possessing a fixed set of abilities to demonstrating agility—the capacity to anticipate, adapt to, and lead change. As exemplified by Larry Page's fear of Google becoming a 'cultural museum,' relying on past best practices is a recipe for failure in a dynamic world.
Current promotion systems are often flawed, rewarding confidence over competence and individual achievement over collaborative impact. Grant advocates for new models, such as promoting salespeople who make referrals (not just top sellers) and measuring contributions to others' success, as Corning does with patent co-authorship.
While many workplaces are in the early stages of AI adoption, a key opportunity lies in using it for skill practice. Generative AI can serve as a tool for role-playing difficult conversations, allowing employees to rehearse and improve their interpersonal skills in a low-stakes environment, much like athletes or musicians practice before performing.
Organizations are susceptible to promoting narcissistic leaders due to biases like the 'babble effect,' where the most talkative person is perceived as the most leader-like. Research shows these CEOs command excessive pay, create volatile financial returns, and hinder recovery from crises due to an inability to admit mistakes.
Keep pulling the thread on Adam Grant.