4 minutes
Social competencies can be learned, and benefit a credit union's bottom line.
Have you ever met someone who is “book smart” but not “street smart” or maybe seems to lack “people skills?” Daniel Goleman’s 1995 book, Emotional Intelligence, moved the phrase “emotional intelligence” 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. There’s much more to social and emotional intelligence than just “being nice.” It’s about personal power, integrity, and building bonds and trust.
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 2,000 managers in 12 large organizations, it was found that 81 percent 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 percent of the difference between the average and best performing leaders was in social and emotional competencies. Trust is one of the 26 social and emotional intelligence competencies from the Social and Emotional Intelligence Profile, developed by Dr. Laura Belsten, founder of the Institute for Social and Emotional Intelligence. High trust teams outperform low trust teams by 300 percent. Another study cited in the book Working With Emotional Intelligence found that top performers in complex jobs add 127 percent to the bottom line.
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 take an assessment. There are several on the market today such as the MSCEIT and EQ 360, but my personal favorite is the Social and Emotional Intelligence Profile (SEIP®360) due to its comprehensive nature, detailed report and built in Individual Development Plan to use to begin planning changed based on the increased awareness.
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. You can improve your self-awareness by actively asking for feedback and listening when it is given. Another way to improve self-awareness is to try new things. We often discover things about ourselves when we are in unusual situations or facing new challenges (such as trying new things in our personal lives or taking on new roles in the workplace). Sometimes daily writing, particularly when writing about your thoughts and feelings, can improve self-awareness and build emotional fluency. Above all, the best way to improve social and emotional intelligence is to practice, practice and then practice some more.
These skills are easiest to improve and produce the best return on investment when the methods for improving social and emotional intelligence are integrated into organizational culture. Sheraton Hotels and Resorts introduced social and emotional intelligence training and coaching with the goal of building a service culture. The company was able to increase its market share by 23 percent and improved turnover by 20 percent and guest satisfaction by 8 percent. Sanofi-Aventis trained a group of sales representatives in social and emotional intelligence. The training resulted in an 18 percent increase in social and emotional intelligence over the control group. Furthermore, the trained sales representatives outsold the control group by an average of 12 percent ($55,200) each per month. At Pepsico, social and emotional intelligence programs generated a 10 percent increase in productivity and an 87 percent 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.
Annette Matthies, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, is a certified leadership coach and is CEO of Aspen Edge Consulting, which helps organizations increase their return on investment by helping them solve their people challenges.
