8 Some people might be skeptical when they hear about emotional intelligence. Why should they nevertheless invest in developing those skills? JM: Because it benefi ts them. If we’re bett er able to deal with emotions so that they can help us reach our goals, we are just bett er off : our well-being and happiness increase, and we’re bett er colleagues. Beyond that, evi- dence tends to show that emotional intelligence relates to job performance, creativity, si� days – to many of the things that matt er in businesses and that turn into what we oft en call the hard results. EL: Yes, absolutely. I see emotional intelligence as a foundation. Once you have this capability, you have the ability to recognize when you need to adapt or ch ange. How will this change the way we lead in the future? EL: Apart from gett ing things done, the developmental and emotional aspect of management will be impor- tant. A good manager needs to create an inclusive, trusting team environ- ment and show concern for the success and well-being of the team and its members. JM: When it comes to leadership, two things matt er: a concern for people and a concern for results. It’s really important that these dimensions work together instead of prioritizing one over the other. A big change in our daily work life happened just recently due to the pandemic. What impact has it had regarding the future of work? EL: It accelerated the ch ange and forced prett y much every industry to think about what the future of work will look like. JM: It also shift ed att ention towards the people-centered approach . On the one hand, tech nology allowed us to remain productive despite social distancing. On the other hand, it became clear that tech nology still leaves a lot of human needs unfulfi lled. After almost two years of people working mainly remotely, will there still be a need for physical offi ce sites in the future? EL: Well, we’ll need a refresh aft er the pandemic. The fi rst thing will be to focus on why employees need to be in the offi ce. A lot of data indicates that the future of the offi ce will be one of interaction and collaboration above all. The other ch allenge will be to optimize hybrid types of work, to ensure that every employee can participate in a meeting, no matt er where he or she works. JM: The shift in work design from functional entities to socioemotional spaces will make the offi ce of the future very diff erent. Spaces are now more thought of as environments that spark emotions to facilitate work. In a next step, we will also have to Professor Jochen Menges holds the Chair of Human Resource Management and Leadership and serves as the Director of the Center for Leadership in the Future of Work at the University of Zurich. In his research, he focuses on the social dynamics between leaders and followers, and on the role of emotions and motivation in organizational life. As Head of HR for Switzerland, Elodie Lhuillier is responsible for Google‘s HR strategy in Switzerland, with a strong focus on culture, diversity and dealing with unique people challenges locally. The Zurich office is Google‘s largest research and development site outside of the USA and employs over 4500 people of more than 85 nationalities. think about how to get that same kind of experience in the virtual format and ultimately how to blend the two. So, in summary: How can companies prepare for the future of work? JM: I’d say, join the HR Valley, the people innovation ecosystem that we’re currently developing in Zurich . It will bring businesses, academia, and others together to co-create the future by jointly working on it. Let’s bundle up and address this issue together – it’s too big for any company to solve alone. EL: Listening to your employees is crucial: giving them a voice and hearing what’s working, what’s not. Thus, an individual company will learn but also benefi t from other companies’ experi- ences through an open exch ange about the ch allenges and how to ta� le them. And what can we do in our own lives to create our version of the future? EL: As an individual, I try to be comfortable with my emotions: being able to talk about them and handling them in a productive fashion. And as a mother, I’m trying to help my kids learn to embrace and deal with their emotions from a young age on so that they are able to interact with others in an emotionally intelligent way. JM: The future is ours to create. We can all shape it, rather than simply await it, through the ch oices we make every day. Choices that relate to how we inform ourselves, critically think about and ultimately prepare for the future; how we endorse and invest into skillsets and values; and how we relate to, work with and lead others. When my ch ildren grow up, I hope that they will fi nd themselves in a world of work that will have embraced the principles of emotional intelligence and that will enable everyone to do what we are best at as people: be human. Listen to the whole conversation of the two. Oec. Dezember 2021