Have you ever met someone who is “book smart” but not “street smart,” or maybe seems to lack “people skills?” The phrase “emotional intelligence” was not part of the public lexicon 10-15 years ago, but Daniel Goleman’s 1995 book, Emotional Intelligence, moved the phrase from academia to the general public. Today, in the world of business and leadership, it is well understood that high intelligence (a high IQ) does not necessarily mean that the person has high emotional intelligence (a high EQ). There are certainly some very smart people who are not in touch with their own emotions or the emotions of others. When we talk about social and emotional intelligence, we are referring to the ability to be aware of our own emotions and those of others, in the moment, and then using that information to manage ourselves and our relationships. In essence, social and emotional intelligence is about awareness of ourselves and others while being able to manage ourselves and our relationships with others. Managers who are lacking in social and emotional intelligence are often called “bullies” and “jerks.” They can be angry, hostile, and emotionally immature. Leaders who lack social and emotional intelligence induce stress in the workplace and cost their companies in both productivity and talent. Research from Stanford University, and from the Center for Creative Leadership, has found that some of the top reasons for executive derailment include poor interpersonal relationships, rigidity, and the inability to work with a team -- in other words, poor social and emotional intelligence. On the flip side, leaders with high social and emotional intelligence tend to be more successful. In a study of 2000 managers in 12 large organizations, it was found that 81% of the competencies that distinguished outstanding leaders were related to social and emotional intelligence. In an additional study of 15 global businesses, it was found that 90% of the difference between the average and best performing leaders was in social and emotional competencies. One of the 26 social and emotional intelligence competencies is trust, and high trust teams outperform low trust teams by 300%. The good news for leaders, managers, organizations, and even individuals just looking to improve their skills is that the social and emotional intelligence competencies are both measurable and learnable. It all starts with awareness, and to best understand your current social and emotional intelligence level, that means taking an assessment. Once you know your areas of strength and weakness, you can improve your social and emotional intelligence through coaching, training, and (perhaps most importantly) practice. Moreover, these skills are easiest to improve and produce the best ROI when the methods for improving social and emotional intelligence are integrated into organizational culture. How can social and emotional intelligence coaching and training help organizations? Sheraton Hotels and Resorts introduced social and emotional intelligence training and coaching with the goal of building a service culture. They were able to increase their market share by 24%. Sanofi-Aventis trained a group of sales representatives in social and emotional intelligence. The training resulted in an 18% increase in social and emotional intelligence over the control group. Furthermore, the trained sales representatives outsold the control group by an average of 12% ($55,200) each per month. At Pepsico, social and emotional intelligence programs generated a 10% increase in productivity and an 87% decrease in turnover. Social and emotional intelligence training can work for both individuals and organizations of all sizes. These programs have a proven positive return on investment and benefit employees throughout all levels of an organization. Are you interested in learning more about social and emotional intelligence assessments or training programs? Aspen Edge Consulting can help make your organization happier and more profitable.
Social and Emotional Intelligence