What is Uniqueness

Intellectual humility is an underused concept in leadership and management. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has elevated the role of humility in leadership and human resource management practices in terms of building an engaging, diverse, and inclusive workplace. One reason for the low engagement level among U.S. employees based on a recent Gallup annual survey is the perceived lack of intellectual humility among leaders and managers alike, which subsequently inhibits the initiation and utilization of shared leadership in teams. In addition, disengaged employees were found to be less likely to display honesty and humility in their interactions with others, suggesting a workplace culture of destructive disagreement and distrust. This chapter provides an evidence-based discussion about the need for leaders to adopt and foster intellectual humility to effectively manage their work groups to improve talent retention, employee engagement, and building an organizational culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belongingness.