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Building Emotional-Intelligence Quotient in the Workplace
June 18, 2009
By Conni Billé
Emotional-Intelligence Quotient, or EQ, has been defined as "the array of personal-management and social skills that allows one to succeed in the workplace and life in general," in "The Manager's Pocket Guide to Emotional Intelligence" by Emily A. Sterrett, Ph.D. As such, it plays a pervasive role in how people interact within organizations. The personal foundations of Emotional Intelligence, such as self-awareness, optimism, and empathy, are laid early in life, while the social dimensions, such as perception, persuasiveness, and tact continue to develop through experience.
The adult workplace doesn't afford us the opportunity to change life's early imprints; however, within the workplace we can create learning environments to help continued development of the social manifestations of EQ, which we commonly call "interpersonal skills." Critical ingredients of organizational success, such as client relations and personnel management, depend on these skills. I developed a simple recipe for my own workplace for doing this in a proactive and non-threatening way.
My company, a consulting organization that works with clients to improve customer experience, has employed a "book club" format internally to offer work groups an opportunity to improve specific skills involved in consulting and in more general social interactions with peers and clients. The company has used this simple EQ program in a variety of formats, but with a template that is easy to follow.
1. Select a book related to a core interpersonal skill required in your business. These may be consulting, selling, or customer service skills, for example. Here are some suggestions to guide your choice:
• Select a well-written book that presents important ideas. Read the entire book and take some notes on each chapter.
• The book should be easy to read, and it should offer how-to advice.
• The book should be divided into short chapters, each with a topic that encourages discussion.
• Validate your book selection with a few key influencers within the organization.
2. Choose a target work group and ask people what might be a convenient time and place for a meeting. This might be a "Lunch 'n Learn" held once a week in a conference room or a dedicated 30-minute segment of a weekly department meeting.
3. For a lunchtime program, pique interest via word of mouth to assess if people might be interested. If there is a positive response, send an invitation to the work group and be inclusive; present it as an opportunity for growth.
4. At the first meeting, involve the group in selecting a format: The group may use a single book that is passed from one participant to another, or members may want to obtain their own copies. The schedule and location of the meetings also should be discussed and agreed upon.
5. To get the process started, model a discussion format:
• Introduce the book and why you selected it, with a brief review of the table of contents.
• Review the key ideas in the first chapter.
• Pose some key open-ended questions to start discussion, such as: "What do you think we might get out of a book like this?"
• Actively facilitate the discussion to ensure everyone gets a chance to participate and all ideas are considered respectfully.
• Ask for a volunteer to take responsibility for reading the next chapter and sharing the ideas in it with the group at the next meeting. Offer your assistance.
• Thank each person for their contribution.
6. Before the next meeting, review the next chapter yourself and privately check in with the volunteer to ensure he or she feels comfortable with presenting the content and starting a discussion. Offer whatever coaching or support the person requests.
7. At the next meeting, allow the volunteer to present the review and initiate the discussion. Your role is to provide continuity, to facilitate as needed, and to solicit ongoing volunteer participation. Continue the pattern of meetings as long as the topics hold the group's interest.
What are some potential outcomes of such a simple program? At my company just such a program inspired executive management to hold a subsequent series of organizational planning meetings at a time when the company was rapidly growing from a small to a mid-sized organization. These meetings started important dialog and led to restatement of the company vision, mission, and values.
The potential benefits of increasing the EQ of individuals within a workplace are as great as the challenges they must work together to meet. It makes sense to begin with a simple program to enhance growth. Just like the recipe for Toll House cookies, sometimes the simplest recipes are the best.
Conni Billé is the director of organizational development and training for LRA Worldwide, a consulting, training and research company that works in the area of customer experience management. LRA has worked with organizations as diverse as the NBA, Quest Diagnostics, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, and VIA RAIL Canada on a variety of training and OD projects. Contact Billé at constance.bille@lraworldwide.com.
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