Working with More Emotion

Women and men view the future of work differently. While many men are excited about the potential opportunities that digital technology and artificial intelligence open up, women generally have a more skeptical and fearful attitude. This was the conclusion of a study by the Center for Leadership in the Future of Work at UZH.

Jochen Menges is the center’s director. “When it comes to the future of work, the dominant narrative today is one that focuses primarily on technological development,” says the business economist. That’s why many companies around the world are currently very keen to explore which digital tools they could use in their work and production processes to deliver a benefit and what they need to do to make sure they’re not left behind in the digital race with their competitors. Social and emotional aspects of work are often being overlooked though. “However, human beings will still play a central role in the future world of work,” says Jochen Menges with confidence, “tomorrow’s technology should inspire us to embrace our skills, our ability to do things and have feelings, it shouldn’t depress us.” This is why, alongside a technological narrative, there needs to be a second, complementary narrative for the future of work, says the researcher, one that emphasizes in particular social factors and our feelings in our jobs – not least because this narrative also appeals more to women.

Our feelings at work are a key aspect of the research conducted by the Center for Leadership in the Future of Work. “Emotions motivate us, they’re the fuel that gives us the energy to do things,” says Jochen Menges. But the emotions that people want to feel at work are extremely individual and can be very different, as the business economist discovered in a large-scale study that he conducted together with colleagues. The researchers asked more than 18,000 people in 35 countries around the globe to describe their emotional needs at the workplace.

The study produced a vast array of different feelings that people consider to be important and want to experience in their jobs. In different contexts, they want to have a sense of purpose, feel competent, autonomous or secure, and they want to be enthused, grateful, or proud. “The number one thing that people around the world want is the feeling of being valued,” says Jochen Menges. A survey of the staff at the University of Zurich reached the same conclusion: first and foremost, the majority of employees want to feel valued.

There’s usually still not enough focus on our feelings at work. However, as a researcher, Menges views the progress being made in the development of artificial intelligence as an opportunity to change this. “So far, it’s been the IT sector that has been best at recognizing how important it is to consider people’s emotions at work,” he says, “companies like Microsoft or Google have realized that you can have all the technology in the world, but it’s pointless if you don’t understand people better and know how to bring them together successfully.”

This knowledge could become even more important in the future. If all the forecasts about AI prove to be correct, in future computers will take over many of the tasks that we currently perform today – especially tedious routine tasks. This could really benefit us. However, the assistance it provides may also have a negative impact on us if it affects the kind of work that we enjoy doing and is important to our feeling of self-worth. “For many people, it’s important to feel self-effective and have the ability to achieve something,” says Jochen Menges. This is why companies shouldn’t just start looking at the technological future today, but should also ask themselves what work means for their employees’ sense of purpose, he says. “We need to make the right decisions today to make sure we can get purpose and fulfillment from our work in the future.” He says this because the research also reveals that anyone who feels their emotional needs are met at work is happier and healthier and on average is less likely to consume excessive amounts of alcohol. In future, there will be more of a demand for emotionally intelligent companies and organizations, says Menges.

But how do these kinds of emotionally intelligent companies develop and how can they foster a culture that promotes the emotional and social needs of their employees? Jochen Menges is convinced that it all starts with decentralized teams. Lots of things can be prescribed and dictated with a top-down approach from senior management – but happiness isn’t one of them. “Individuals must first learn for themselves how to better recognize their emotional and social needs and discuss them within a team context,” says Menges, “if people start talking to each other and can work together to resolve questions and processes for which the boss also doesn't have the answer, this can create a good workplace culture for everyone.”

Jochen Menges calls this the “bottom-up approach to happiness”. It requires managers to provide the free space to allow this to happen.  In many workplace contexts today, this approach is still visionary, says the researcher. “But we need to start asking people what emotions they want to feel at work.” The future will reveal how the machines will help us meet our own individual emotional and social needs.