Here’s a lesson for college students that might seem counterintuitive: In the Age of Automation, it turns out, soft skills matter more than ever.
In fact, the Harvard Business Review recently listed such traits as emotional competence, connections, and an ethical compass as “skills that can not only make you unable to be automated, but will make you employable no matter what the future holds.” As one educator put it in this month’s education feature, “Programmers can do amazing things with robotics and AI, but unless they understand ethics, we’re all in trouble.” Yes, the same students making all that automation possible must be able to read emotions, to understand context, to build connections.
Get a fresh take on the day’s top news
Subscribe to the St. Louis Daily newsletter for a smart, succinct guide to local news from award-winning journalists Sarah Fenske and Ryan Krull.
So what, exactly, does that look like? Well, it looks a lot like restaurateur Qui Tran, whom writer Jeannette Cooperman profiles in this issue.
Tran, whose family came here as refugees from Vietnam in 1979, faced uncertainty from the start. At age 8, he was already helping his mother take dinner orders at her Vietnamese restaurant, Mai Lee, where he quickly learned to bridge cultural differences. Today, his friends and staff—and even the ingredients on his menus—represent a blend of backgrounds and influences.
Tran’s tight with both the city’s top chefs (Gerard Craft, Kevin Nashan) and famous expats (restaurateur Danny Meyer, UFC champ Tyron Woodley), but he’s also just as likely to strike up a conversation with a new face at Mai Lee’s bar. “He’s our Sam Malone,” says his friend Mike Emerson, co-founder of Pappy’s Smokehouse. “Knows everybody by name.”
A onetime international business major, Tran’s never stopped learning. In preparing to open Nudo House, he sought out one of the world’s foremost ramen experts to learn the science behind the broth and noodles. “He soaks up knowledge, ideas, and techniques from every chef he meets,” Cooperman notes, “and when he cooks, he’s a whirl of concentrated energy.”
That energy fuels a work ethic that’s practically unrivaled. “I sent him a quote once that said 5 a.m. is the magical hour because great people are either going to bed or getting up,” says Emerson. “Qui is the only guy I know who falls into both categories.”
Somehow, despite the lack of sleep, his EQ’s off the charts. Tran practices martial arts—and once disarmed an angry kitchen worker with a knife—but he prefers to listen, to emphasize dignity and respect, to look for common ground.
And when it comes to finding common ground, the best place to start is often over a cold drink and a hot meal. As Tran knows, good food can break down barriers, transcend cultures, land you on the cover of Food & Wine. With time and thought, even ramen can be elevated to an art form.
One more lesson that college students can appreciate.
