Emotional Intelligence

DB – Chapters 11 & 12 – Emotional Intelligence
Hello Colleagues,
Discussion Board (DB) posts each week are intended to help you
make connections between what we are studying in the course
and what is going on in the real world of organizations and
management now.
Your DB posting should be substantive and unique. A thoughtful
paragraph is needed (I know someone will ask how long – so we
will use the rule of 400 words to be eligible for superior ratings –
this length is enough to get most students to do some critical
thinking I have found). Do not copy and paste or provide
quotations – this post should be your words! Make sure you do a
good job on this – think of it like a discussion question(s) on
an exam.
Your post will be rated on the following criteria: a) Guidelines –
the degree which it conforms to the assignment instructions and
rating criteria; b) Format – the degree to which it presents a
professional work product in demeanor and presentation;
c) Writing – the degree to which it is well written in terms of word
usage, grammar, syntax, punctuation, etc; d) Depth – the number
of your substantive words addressing the topic (i.e., does not
count quotes, cut & paste, trivial comments, etc); e) Content – the
degree to which you provide substantive information that
addresses the assignment. See the Rubric – Criteria posted at
the Canvas>Assignment link for more detail.
Once you have reviewed the article/mini-case, please post your
critique of it – what are its strengths and weaknesses. Clearly
make at least one connection to a concept in the first
Chapter and one concept in the second Chapter that we are
studying this week. Highlight each of these parts of your
response so I cannot miss them – I have to see each to give
you credit and I am not going to search your response for
these connections.
Next, post comments on four classmates posts with a
critique, questions, observations or other insights. These
should be in the 100 word range at least. Note that you will
not be able to see classmate’s post until you have posted.
Please let me know if you have any questions at all.
Emotional Intelligence is an antecedent of human behavior
(Chapter 11 – Motivation) and (Chapter 12 – Individual OB), so
you should be able to make a lot of good connections between EI
and your material for this week.
Before you read the article below, you want to go to the following
link and read about what EI is and do the brief EI assessment
there to help you better understand this concept and how it can
be useful in management.
https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/ei-quiz.htm
Links to an external site.
(For your information, in MG 464 – Leadership of Organizational
Change we go into much more depth about EI for those of you
that are management majors or that want to take this course as
an elective. We do the long-form EI assessment which gives you
much more detail on your EI also.)
Please let me know if you have any questions at all.
4 Emotional Intelligence Skills to
Transform Your Leadership Style
Steven Stein
Links to an external site.
Many of the hierarchical and authoritarian styles of leadership
have become obsolete, and we’ve experienced significant strides
in replacing them with our advanced experiential knowledge.
Rewards-punishment “transactional” management styles have
proven unproductive. New studies have encouraged us to
embrace “transformative styles” in which organizational leaders
inspire their teams to achieve a collective purpose.
Yet we’re still in the transition zone. We need to equip more
leaders with the skills that combine interpersonal abilities,
including empathy and trust, with the capacity to model creative
problem solving when faced with tough situations. We refer to this
skill set as Emotional Intelligence (EI). EI is such a crucial job skill
that its positive impact on the workplace has nearly surpassed
technical ability, as proven by its popularity in recent years.
In simple terms, EI is the ability to identify and manage emotional
information in oneself and in others. Although it has proven its
value in the workplace, we continue to experience a scarcity of
this new brand of leadership talent. According to a global survey
Links to an external site.
by Deloitte, leadership is the most urgent concern when
considering gaps in workforce readiness.
Why haven’t we done a better job of cultivating high EI skilled
leaders? One reason is that we continue to mistakenly believe
good technical or sales skills translate to good management skills.
The thinking that has unfortunately hung on seems to be: If they
excel at analyzing, fixing, and selling, then they are able lead
others to excel, as well. But the facts are that these skills and
competencies have little to do with being a good leader.
Another erroneous standard of leadership talent is mistakenly
assuming that high IQ is a predictor of leadership strength. While
leaders likely have higher IQs than followers, the qualities that
make up strong leaders go far beyond one’s cognitive
intelligence.
Finally, choosing leaders based on personality remains
widespread. Aggressiveness and extroversion, characteristics that
tends to stand out in job candidates, don’t typically correlate with
self-awareness, flexibility, and influencing others. Forceful leaders
may be good at giving orders, but that doesn’t generally translate
into inspiring others into action.
New research confirms that EI is most effective in improving
workplace morale. After gleaning results
Links to an external site.
from the largest database of EI test scores in the world, our
research identified four pillars of EI that form the foundation of
competencies needed to prepare and propel today’s business
world into success now and the future.
The good news is that all can practice the four pillars to transform
their personal and organizational leadership style:
1. Express authenticity on every level. Acting without
integrity can be the kiss of death in today’s world. Today’s
top leaders must be seen as credible, fair, and “real.”
Bombastic, arrogant, and dominating leaders are out, and
humility, which is considered a strength, is in. Employees will
offer the respect leaders desire and go the extra mile when
they think their leaders are genuine.
2. Coach others to realize their full potential.Collaboration
and mentoring make up today’s more equitable workplaces.
Top leaders coach their teams through management styles
as in simply walking around to be seen and available, and
one-on-one meetings where they listen to employees’
concerns, offer feedback and guidance, and take
responsibility for removing obstacles.
3. Communicate the organization’s mission in a way that
inspires employees, suppliers, and
customers.Companies are realizing they are not in business
just to make money or produce a product. Developing a
sense of higher purpose (for example, Google’s mission is
“to organize the world’s information and make it universally
accessible and useful”) heightens engagement and
motivation for employees and other stakeholders, which
helps attract and retain the right people. Insightful leaders
communicate a purpose, meaning, and vision, and express a
hopeful view of the future.
4. Encourage innovation and risk-taking.Success will accrue
to organizations that encourage their employees to think
creatively and champion new ideas. That doesn’t mean
everyone gets their own R&D budget, but it does mean that
leaders give their people greater autonomy and license to
explore customers’ needs while providing a fair, safe, and
encouraging outlet for employees to propose new ideas. This
new brand of leader also must be empathetic and
understanding when risky new ideas don’t succeed.
Innovative leaders spur imaginative and autonomous
thinking and see challenges as learning opportunities.
Read more at http://www.business2community.com/leadership/4-
emotional-intelligence-skills-transform-leadershipstyle-01871970#7U8gf4jDWe7qEBS4.99