Developing Emotional Intelligence
A growing body of research is making clear that brainpower alone is not enough to assure success at work. In high-IQ professions and in roles requiring people to do complex work, emotional intelligence has been 
shown to account for as much as 80% of the variance in discriminating star performers. For success in a leadership role it is becoming known as the 90% factor. No matter how technically gifted professionals might be, if they don’t have the competencies associated with emotional intelligence, they are far less likely to succeed as leaders.
shown to account for as much as 80% of the variance in discriminating star performers. For success in a leadership role it is becoming known as the 90% factor. No matter how technically gifted professionals might be, if they don’t have the competencies associated with emotional intelligence, they are far less likely to succeed as leaders.Defining “Emotional Intelligence”
“Emotional Intelligence” is a term that has already reaching the level of jargon and is defined in different ways by different authors. When I use this term, I am referring to “personal characteristics and social abilities that are highly important in determining success in work and in life.”
Emotional Intelligence and Executive Coaching
All of us have blind spots in our perceptions of ourselves. What you don’t see in yourself is often painfully obvious to people who work with and for you. But operating on a distorted perception of yourself, you continue to behave in ways that undermine your own effectiveness. Recent research has demonstrated that the higher people are in the management structure, the more distorted their self-perceptions tend to be. They see themselves as much more capable in the mastery of emotional intelligence than they are viewed by their direct reports and other people in the organization.
You can’t give away to others what you yourself have not yet mastered. Executive coaching must begin with expanding a leader’s self-awareness of strengths and developmental needs regarding emotional intelligence. By expanding the accuracy of leaders’ self-perceptions, they are better able to deploy their strengths and begin to work on areas in need of development.
As an executive coach, I provide two sources of information to expand my client’s self-awareness: data gathered in my assessment interviews and the Simmons EQ Profile to obtain measures of characteristics associated with emotional intelligence. (This instrument is described in Measuring Emotional Intelligence.)
Working with individual leaders, I provide them with detailed behavioral feedback gathered in my interviews and interpret the results of their EQ Profile. I leave them with a Personal Development Handbook, designed to allow them to digest the information provided in our meeting. Assignments include following a structured format to ask peers, direct-reports, and managers for behavioral feedback to develop a more complete understanding of how they are perceived by others. They also create a Personal Development Action Plan.
In about two weeks, I return for a two-stage meeting. First, I meet with the managers privately, discuss their reactions to the interview findings and the EQ Profile. We also review and refine their action planning. Then we create an agenda for a meeting with the individual’s direct manager. We invite the manager to join us for a facilitated conversation of interview findings, EQ Profile results, and the action plan. The manager’s input is integrated into the final version of the action plan.
The agenda, however, can include any topic of concern to the participant or the manager. The discussions have ranged from developing better working relationships, discussing concerns about the individual’s performance, and clearing up concerns that up to that time have remained unspoken.
Working in collaboration with the manager, we create a follow-up plan appropriate for the situation. This may include working with the individual and his or her team. Follow-up coaching, on site or by telephone, is usually essential to support change.
