Position2 Inc

Is "Empathy" a red herring in the AI era?

We're told that as AI takes over technical tasks, humans need to lean into "soft skills." But Neil Shepherd argues that leaning solely on empathy is a trap. In 2026, AI agents are already proving to be better at unbiased performance feedback and conflict resolution than many human managers.

So, what is actually left for the leader?
Amit Malhotra suggests a shift in mindset:

- Treat agents like interns: Be a "dictator" to your AI agents—give clear, concise, and lawful orders focused on intent.

- Be a "human" to your team: Use reclaimed time not for more "decks," but for high-stakes psychological mediation and solving "unsolvable" human problems.

Leadership in the age of AI isn't about being "nice"—it's about applying judgment with tacit information that a model simply doesn't have.

Check out the episode: https://bit.ly/4tgOz7N

Episode 62 | Position² So I actually think that for some of the really advanced high IQ jobs, they're going to get a hit a lot faster because the arbitrage between the labor cost of skilled labor and what a model can do is going to be so visible.