Irish leaders prize empathy over AI skills in management

Business leaders in Ireland place more value on empathy in management during AI adoption than their peers in the UK, France and Germany, according to Expleo's latest survey. Its April reading also showed confidence in AI in Ireland was steady at 65 out of 100.

The findings suggest a stronger emphasis in Ireland on human-centred leadership as companies integrate AI into day-to-day operations. In the survey, 28% of Irish business leaders said the most valuable skill for future managers would be empathetic coaching and people leadership, compared with 21% in the UK, 18% in Germany and 15% in France.

Across the four markets, the most commonly selected management skill was the ability to integrate AI into workflows and drive change, at an average of 25%. In Ireland, however, only 19% chose that option, suggesting leaders there are less likely than their European counterparts to see technical integration as the main priority for managers.

The results come as businesses continue to assess the organisational effects of AI adoption. Expleo's monthly AI Pulse tracker found that 45% of business leaders in Ireland are worried about how AI is transforming their organisation, up from 43% a month earlier.

That level of concern was higher than in the other countries covered by the survey: 41% in the UK and 34% in both France and Germany. Irish respondents were the most cautious of the markets included in the research.

Survey snapshot

The AI Pulse index measures sentiment towards the use of AI in business on a scale from 0, described as very worried, to 100, described as very confident. The survey covered 200 respondents in each of Ireland, the UK, Germany and France.

Ireland's April result was unchanged from March at 65, indicating that overall confidence in AI neither improved nor deteriorated during the month. That stability in the headline score sits alongside the rise in concern about AI's effect on organisations, suggesting a more mixed picture in which confidence in the technology coexists with unease about its practical consequences.

The contrast in responses also underlines a broader debate over how management roles may change as AI tools become more common in workplaces. While one view places more weight on process change and implementation, the Irish findings suggest many leaders believe managing people through change will matter more.

Phil Codd gave his assessment of the findings.

"The high proportion of business leaders valuing human-centred leadership actually shows a great level of AI maturity. Business leaders here understand that it is people who transform organisations, not AI. The organisations that will get the most from AI are not the ones racing to implement it fastest, but the ones investing in the human side. Ireland's focus on empathy as a core management skill isn't a reluctance to embrace AI, it's an advanced understanding of what successful adoption actually requires," said Phil Codd, Managing Director - Ireland, Expleo.

The figures suggest Irish companies may be approaching AI adoption with more caution than some neighbouring markets, even as confidence remains relatively firm. That combination could reflect concern about the effect on jobs, internal processes and management structures as organisations decide where AI should sit within existing teams.

For managers, the results indicate that interpersonal skills may be gaining weight in boardroom thinking even as businesses seek operational gains from AI. Rather than treating management in the AI era mainly as a question of introducing new tools, respondents in Ireland appeared more inclined to rank coaching, leadership and staff support as the more pressing requirement.

The findings add to evidence that AI adoption in business is not being viewed solely as a technology issue. In Ireland, many leaders also see it as a management and workforce issue, with empathy emerging as the clearest point of difference from peers in the UK, France and Germany.