Early in my career in IT, I believed technical skill was everything.
The more you knew, the more valuable you were. If you could solve complex problems, troubleshoot systems, and understand the technical details better than others, success would follow.
And to a degree, that was true.
Technical skill builds credibility. It earns trust. It gets you in the room.
But over time, especially in leadership, I have learned something important.
Technical skills solve system problems. Emotional intelligence solves people problems.
And most major organizational challenges involve both.
The longer I work in higher education and IT leadership, the more I see that communication, empathy, emotional awareness, and relationship-building often make the difference between good leaders and great ones.
You can be the smartest technical person in the room, but if you struggle to communicate, build trust, navigate conflict, or lead people through change, your impact may be limited.
At the same time, emotional intelligence without enough technical understanding can also create challenges, especially in technical leadership roles.
The best leaders I have worked with develop both.
They understand the work. They understand the people. And they know how to bridge the gap between the two.
So here’s the question:
In today’s workplace, what matters more: Technical skill or emotional intelligence?
Has your answer changed over the course of your career?
I’d love to hear your perspective.