I like your article – it captured modern trends very precisely. From low-gpa loosers I know in my (technical) college many strive to get most of their "social skills". And they have an illusion (or a dream) that such skills will definitely allow them to somehow "control" other people, smart and hard-working, and get profit from results of other's work without doing any job themselves :-)) (of course this is just kid's dreams, but funny)
But what I see is that these social skills can be improved only to extent of how intelligent – not with people but in a whole – you already are. So don't worry that sociall skills will replace intelligence in the end :)
Actually if latter happens, then humans will be no different from chimps or other higher primates – they are very sociable too but lack that technical-savvy which allows us to think up & build all this stuff from house to laptop that is essential attribute of human civilization now.

That said, I have lousy social skills. At 26 I may end up in low to mid-level background tech jobs for the rest of my working life. I can do well on written EQ tests if I answer dishonestly, but in practice I can't think of anything meaningful, or even any convincing BS, to contribute at meetings. Ironically, I want to be rich and famous, but with an utter lack of charisma and expression in my face, at least the "famous" part looks unlikely.

Also people are routinely turned into "not nice to work with" types because of the environment created by management or the fact that they were a poor fit from the beginning. There's tons of research on both of these points as well.

Of course, it depends on the role. You probably wouldn't want them managing a team or dealing with clients but I think it's vital for managers to have imagination, flexibility and respect so they can utilise the maverick talent and not just the mediocre nice guy. Of course, if you can get someone who's a technical whizz AND has great social skills then great, but it doesn't always work that way.

* * * * * *

Hi, Caitlin. There's a lot of management consulting type research that shows that companies are more effective if they fire someone who is difficult than keeping him around because he's smart.

–Penelope

Ironically, what is basically a social disorder that I am currently being treated for stems from an overabundance of these traits. You'd think that empathy so strong it works as mild telepathy would be an asset in the workplace, right? WRONG. The overwhelming input of information makes me twitchy and nervous, which peers respond badly to. Add that to the illusion of being able to see the future and get into people's heads and what you have is the weird coworker that no one wants to interact with. In fact, I am seeing a distinct trend in today's youth towards this type of problem, and I suspect that it is caused by consistent over stimulation during early development. Because it is becoming more common, the the well-adjusted are going to be in higher demand than ever, and while it may currently be an addendum to a resume', I believe that fairly soon it will be a primary reason for hire in management positions.