The qualities hiring managers are looking for in 2026 are significantly different from those they have sought since AI was invented. Computer science majors may expect these teams to be looking for a specific programming language, a set of past jobs, or a particular degree. However, as coding has become increasingly automated, these teams are increasingly seeking human skills. For example, emotional intelligence, the ability to read a room, regulate your own reactions, build trust quickly, and keep yourself calm under stress are skills that AI can’t replicate. At High Point University in North Carolina, two global leaders have recently shared their insights into hiring with hundreds of students to change the conversation on who is hired in these industries after graduation.
Mark Bradburn and Dee Ann Turner, two prolific business-minded professionals, came to HPU to offer advice to students in 2026 and beyond. Mark is the founder and co-managing financial advisor of The Bradburn Group at Morgan Stanley and HPU’s Wealth Management Expert in Residence. Dee Ann, the former Chick-fil-A vice president for talent and sustainability, serves as HPU’s Talent Acquisition Expert-in-Residence. One manages billions of dollars in client assets, while the other was responsible for selecting thousands of Chick-fil-A franchisees and corporate staff during her 33-year career. Below, they concluded similarly on the importance of emotional intelligence in securing and retaining careers across any business industry.
Table of Contents
The Hiring Manager’s Perspective
During his Sept. 25, 2025, Questions & Answers session at High Point University‘s Hayworth Fine Arts Center, titled “Stress Management and Risk Tolerance in the Financial Sector,” Bradburn explored what HR representatives are looking for in candidates today. He stated, “I hear all the time that emotional intelligence is the number one factor employers are looking for today. Whether the job is managing finances or collecting garbage, stress is stress. It’s about how you process it.”
Bradburn’s point was not simply academic. As a founder of a high-grossing company, he manages substantial assets for high-net-worth clients. In his experience, he believes emotional regulation is a non-negotiable job requirement that AI cannot replicate. He shared his insights with HPU students by saying, “When you’re dealing with billions of dollars, which is what I manage, you can’t panic. People are trusting you to make sound financial decisions, so staying calm and being thoughtful with your responses and their reputations is super critical.” He compared how a patient reacts when a doctor delivers a diagnosis calmly versus alarmingly. If your doctor is uncaring, distracted, or vague in their response, you may not take the results as well as you would if they were attentive, kind, and descriptive.
The Talent Chief’s Perspective: What Dee Ann Turner Has To Say To Current Undergraduates
Unlike Bradburn, Turner has experience on the other side of the hiring table as the one who makes decisions on who is an asset to her company. As a 33-year Chick-fil-A veteran and the first female officer in the country’s history, Turner was instrumental in building and growing the restaurant chain’s talent and culture departments. Since her retirement, she has continued that work as the founder and CEO of Dee Ann Turner & Associates and as a sought-after speaker, bringing that perspective to High Point University students during her regular campus visits for their Life Skills program.
Turner has shed light on how career decisions are made, especially when students are not in the room, and how you show up in every interaction with interviewers, peers, and mentors. Resilience, personal connection, and a commitment to lifelong learning can have a greater impact than candidates may realize. Her own story, which began with rejection from Chick-fil-A before a chance encounter reshaped her path, has become a frequent reference point for students grappling with the uncertainty of early-career decisions. When you apply yourself, showcase your personality, and take a humble approach to growth, you may have a greater opportunity for success than someone with a better resume but a difficult personality.
The Common Thread: Self-Regulation Under Pressure
The connection between Bradburn’s wealth-management lens and Turner’s talent-selection lens is their focus on self-regulation and one’s ability to stay steady in high-stakes environments. Bradburn encouraged HPU students to aim for a consistent level of emotional stimulation of six or seven, rather than becoming overcome by setbacks or overwhelmed with excitement after a win. Alex Muravski, a sophomore business analytics major who observed these conversations, reflected on what he had learned, stating, “Realize the bad times are going to pass, but the good times are also going to pass, so don’t celebrate every minor victory like it’s the World Cup.”
Emotional steadiness is exactly what companies like Chick-fil-A look for when selecting franchisees and corporate staff, as Turner has explained to HPU audiences. A person who can manage themselves is thought to manage others better. In contrast, those who can manage others can build a remarkable culture that separates great organizations from those that do not scratch the surface of success.
Why Emotional Intelligence Matters in the AI-Saturated Market
Any student in 2026 will know how much AI has taken over education and career decisions since its development, automating more and more tasks each day. AI systems can draft reports, summarize a meeting, or generate a client email in seconds. For this reason, hiring directors are looking more toward the remaining human skills, such as building trust, interpreting ambiguous situations, managing difficult conversations, and keeping teams calm during high-stakes change, which are all forms of emotional intelligence.
High Point University invests heavily in its Access to Innovators program to support this growth among its students, bringing dozens of leaders each year to campus to offer lectures, conversations, and mentorship sessions. At HPU, Students aren’t reading about emotional intelligence in textbooks but watching executives demonstrate this skill during classroom visits, Q&A sessions, and informal lunches. Tomiwa Bello, a senior HPU finance major who completed a summer internship with Morgan Stanley and has been offered a full-time role, described his biggest takeaway from Bradburn’s session as learning “to take a step back and analyze the situation, leaning on my mentors and my team to ensure I’m bringing forth the best of myself.”
The Takeaway for Students
Bradburn and Turner’s advice offers a checklist for any college student or professional in the US who wants to build the trait that employers name as their top priority. As you move forward in your career, permit yourself to pause before responding under stress. For example, focus on what you can control rather than what you can’t, and try to invest in real relationships instead of seeing every meeting as a transaction. Finally, you may benefit from treating feedback as data instead of a verdict. How you handle yourself in each moment can build a reputation over time, shaping how HR and leadership discuss your role in rooms you aren’t present in.
For students at High Point University, this lesson is delivered in person and on repeat. You don’t have to be born with emotional intelligence to build this skill, as it requires discipline, understanding of the changing social climate, and a willingness to try. In a 2026 job market where technical tasks are increasingly handled by software, the people who master that discipline early will be the ones employers fight to hire and keep.
