People Before Tech: The Importance of Psychological Safety and Teamwork in the Digital Age

Tech companies are leaving their employees behind and valuing IQ over EQ, or emotional intelligence, warns business blogger Blomstrom (Emotional Banking) in this incisive treatise on prioritizing human interaction. She spotlights “psychological safety” (when teams can be “open, courageous, flexible, vulnerable, learning, unafraid”) as the foundation for effective workplace operations. Human resource departments, she writes, play a large role in implementing changes and, in the way of advice, provides an HR checklist to ensure “humanity” in the workplace: encourage everyone to focus on empathy and EQ, help people “reignite passion,” and foster the ability to fail. She also encourages an “agile approach” to work, in which teams are flexible and open-minded, which can be implemented by “aggressively praising” flexibility and prioritizing the customer. A postpandemic guide is a timely addition that addresses technology issues leaders face (she distinguishes between remote and flexible work, for example), but at times, her advice can get lost in jargon (“Obtain true permission, aka ‘buy-in,’ for ‘reducing the human debt,’ ” for example). Still, her case is solid, and leaders ready to implement a people-first philosophy will find much to consider. (July)