4 Employees In All Company That Must Have High Emotional Intelligence

By: Loura Sanchez, Managing Partner, HindmanSanchez 

Many of us know that someone’s intellectual intelligence (IQ) can be a predictor of the person’s ability to be successful in a given profession. However, we do not always consider the value of someone’s emotional intelligence (EQ). Individuals with high EQ are proven to be better team members, managers, and leaders. Within any organization there are 4 employees which must have high emotional intelligence in order for your company to be successful. Before discussing those 4 positions, let’s discuss what emotional intelligence is and isn’t.

Emotional intelligence is an ability to perceive, understand and manage emotions and feelings. Generally, EQ includes 3 primary skills:

Emotional Awareness

Emotional awareness is the ability to identify your own emotions and those of others. In order to develop emotional awareness you will need practice and patience. It means recognizing and being able to express your moment-to-moment emotional experience and to handle those emotions without becoming overwhelmed. Once you master your own emotions you can then begin to identify others emotions through empathy. Emotional awareness will allow you to communicate clearly and effectively, make decisions based on what is important versus an emotionally driven decision, and build strong, healthy, rewarding relationships.

Emotional Control

Emotional control means the ability to harness emotions and use them to accomplish more and solve problems by building rapport and trust quickly. To develop emotional control, practice and patience are important again, as is your ability to not “feed” particular emotions. Looking ahead and doing things to change a negative emotion can be valuable tools as can intellectual discipline and physiological modifications.

Emotional Management

Emotional management skills allow you to regulate your own emotions and influence others emotions. Being able to influence others emotions is powerful and is essential to companies facing significant change, conflict or upheaval.

In any company, having employees with emotional intelligence can be a huge differentiator in your market place. Ideally, all employees need a high EQ. However, it is essential that the following 4 employees have high emotional intelligence.

1- The CEO – You!

It is essential that you have the ability to not only understand your industry, understand your product, have the necessary degrees, education and experience, but that you also relate to and understand all levels of employees within your corporation. This is best accomplished through strong emotional awareness. You can test your EQ online for free at www.psychology.about.com/library/quiz/bl_eq_quiz.htm. There are many resources available, both online as well as coaching, which can help you develop your emotional intelligence.

2- Department Heads

Regardless of the organizational structure of your company, those individuals which routinely manage people, processes and client relationships should all have high EQ. Why is it essential to these individuals? Because in order to be an effective manager of people you must be able to identify, manage and harness the mindset and feelings of those that you are managing. Being able to do this allows managers to put themselves in their employees’ shoes, to understand their obstacles, excuses and/or motivation. Emotional intelligence is crucial in managing processes because there is always a humanistic component to any process and a process cannot be successful without understanding how human emotions, judgments, etc. affect the outcome of the process. And lastly, responsibility for relationships with key clients and/or vendors also requires a high level of emotional intelligence in order to develop those relationships and to view your company’s products and or services, from the client’s perspective as opposed to your internal perspective.

3- Guru

Whether the HR function is handled by you as the CEO, another high level individual or perhaps even an administrative person, the individual who handles it needs the ability to exhibit and implement refined EQ skills. While this may be self-explanatory there are some additional benefits of having a highly skilled EQ person in this position. Mainly, in your recruiting, being able to quickly identify the emotional intelligence of a proposed candidate can be the difference between an amazing hire and a hire that blows up quickly after they are incorporated into your culture.

4- Receptionist

Again depending upon the organizational structure of your company, the title may change but it is the individual who creates the first impression of your company to your clients. This person may not have in-depth relationships or even a substantial number of contacts; but, it’s the individual who answers your phones, the individual who greets customers as they walk through the door, the individual who is responding to all of your online inquiries. This person has the ability to quickly establish emotional connections with these individuals and understand and appreciate where these customers are coming from in terms of their interactions with your company. Therefore, having an individual who has a high EQ in this position will benefit your company by allowing that individual to offer insights which no one else in the company may have. And, if this person has a high EQ they can also influence the emotions of a client and change angry, upset clients into happy, raving fans.

Investing in the continued growth of your employees’ EQ will produce amazing results in your company by having flexible, self-motivated, positive employees who make decisions which are based on fact but which take into account the feelings surrounding the situation and using these feelings to make better decisions.

Written By: Loura Sanchez

Managing Partner, HindmanSanchez

Loura K. Sanchez is the managing partner of HindmanSanchez, PC one of the premier law firms in the United States representing community associations. She is an experienced national speaker and author who works with business owners to help them achieve their corporate goals through development of culture and employees. Her experience in running both established and start-up companies has produced years of experiences and successes that she is now sharing with other business owners. You can reach her at lsanchez@hindmansanchez.com, on Linked In at lourasanchez or at 303.522.5823.

Loura became an attorney to help others. Her choice of practicing in the community association arena allows her to do just that through proactive approaches and leading edge techniques. She sees herself as an integral part of her clients’ teams with a role of offering a way to do whatever the client wants, not reasons not to do it.

Education:
Bachelor of Science, Metropolitan State College of Denver– 1988
Juris Doctorate, University of Colorado School of Law – 1991

Professional Organizations:
Community Association Institute – Since 1992
Former Dean, College of Community Association Lawyers -2009-2011
Chair, CAI Law Seminar – 2005 & 2012
PMPD National Faculty – 2000- Present
College of Community Association Lawyers, Board of Governors –  2006-2010
President-Elect, Rocky Mountain Chapter- 2001
Board Member, Rocky Mountain Chapter – 1995-1997, 2001
Colorado Bar Association – Since 1991
Denver Bar Association – Since 1991

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