New Study Warns AI Won’t Replace You But Lack of Soft Skills Might

As AI continues to evolve, technical expertise alone is no longer sufficient for success according to new Skiilify survey.

As AI continues to evolve at an unprecedented pace, technical expertise alone is no longer sufficient for success according to new research by Skiilify titled: AI Won’t Replace You—But Lack of Soft Skills Might: What Every Tech Leader Needs to Know. As the first in an ongoing quarterly series of studies from Skiilify, the initial study finds that nearly all (94%) of technology leaders felt that resilience and other critical soft skills are required for the future, but many fail to get the proper training required. With AI, automation, and globalization reshaping the workforce, soft skills have emerged as the key differentiator for career advancement and organizational agility.

As AI continues to evolve at an unprecedented pace, technical expertise alone is no longer sufficient for success according to new research by Skiilify titled: AI Won’t Replace You—But Lack of Soft Skills Might: What Every Tech Leader Needs to Know.

Soft skills— which include curiosity, resilience, tolerance of ambiguity, perspective-taking, relationship-building, and humility— are critical for fostering collaboration, problem solving, negotiation, and mentoring in tech environments. Unfortunately, many tech professionals struggle to develop these skills due to lack of time, structured learning opportunities, and actionable feedback.

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“We’ve invested billions helping machines get smarter, but we’ve neglected the human side of the equation,” said Dr. Paula Caligiuri, Co-Founder of Skiilify and a D’Amore-McKim School of Business Distinguished Professor at Northeastern University. “Despite recognizing the rapid pace of AI and automation, most professionals believe significant changes to their roles are still on the horizon but they don’t realize the immediacy of the shift that’s coming. The reality is that in an AI-driven world, it’s not your code that will drive your success, but your agility skills like curiosity and resilience.”

Equally concerning is that many leaders are underestimating the speed of change with respect to AI’s impact on their own roles. This mismatch is creating a lack of urgency and putting teams at risk of falling behind. Without strong soft skills, even the most advanced technical teams will struggle to adapt, collaborate, and innovate in an AI-driven future. The survey highlights this dichotomy and its challenges such as:

75% believe tolerance of ambiguity is essential, yet 37% struggle with decision-making under uncertainty.
84% value perspective-taking, but 31% find it challenging to reconcile conflicting viewpoints.
93% rate curiosity as critically important, yet nearly half cite lack of time as their biggest barrier to learning.
The disparity between the recognition of soft skills’ importance and the development of these skills poses a significant challenge for tech professionals today.

“The survey illuminates the increasing importance of soft skills such as curiosity, resilience, tolerance of ambiguity, perspective-taking, relationship-building, and humility…all of which are crucial for fostering collaboration, problem-solving, and driving innovation in a sector that thrives on constant evolution,” said Caligiuri. “By equipping tech professionals with the necessary tools and training, the industry can enhance its ability to innovate and collaborate effectively in an AI-driven future.”

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