Building an Emotionally Intelligent Team:
Emotional Intelligence's Key Role in Personal Leadership, Interpersonal Communication, Resiliency, and Organizational Success

by Nora Burns, SPHR

“A leader’s intelligence has to have a strong emotional component. He has to have high levels of self-awareness, maturity, and self-control. She must be able to withstand the heat, handle setbacks, and when those lucky moments arise, enjoy success with equal parts of joy and humility. No doubt emotional intelligence is more rare than book smarts, but my experience says it is actually more important in the making of a leader. You just can’t ignore it.” - Jack Welch, former Chairman and CEO, General Electric Co.

Drawing upon more than 30 years of research, the Center for Creative Leadership has determined that the skill set known as “Emotional Intelligence” is related to each of the specific behaviors associated with leadership effectiveness, including items such as participative management, the capacity to generate buy-in from team members, self-awareness and composure, the ability to build and mend relationships, resiliency to change and stress, and the ability to work effectively with different styles. A variety of other research has correlated from 25-50 percent of individual workplace success directly to these specific skills.

Leaders and teams with high Emotional Intelligence scores consistently outperform individuals and teams that are primarily qualified on technical competencies alone. Handling the obstacles any organization and/or work team faces at one point or another and continuing on to innovative and insightful solutions is a sign of a highly functional team and exceptional leader.

Emotional Intelligence is a key part to getting to the core of what is wanted and needed by the individual as well as the organization as a whole. Most individuals, particularly those who have been promoted into a management or supervisory role, have at least some level of inherent Emotional Intelligence proficiency. The good news is that these skills can be consciously learned and that no matter how high your current skill level may be, there’s room to improve and to take your personal and team leadership to the next level.

NOTE: This workshop incorporates the BarOn Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQi®) family of instruments. The EQi was the first scientifically developed and validated measure of EI, has over one million applications worldwide, and strongly enhances the ability to develop competencies organizationally and individually.

Benefits:

Upon completion of the program, participants will be able to:

• Understand the applications for and importance of emotional intelligence
• Be aware of and comprehend their own current level of emotional intelligence
• Apply tools to grow those skill areas requiring further development
• Learn to practice skills to further improve interactions with co-workers

Sample Agenda:

• Pre-workshop (2-3 weeks prior to the classroom portion of the program)

• Each participant will take the BarOn EQi assessment online
• Following completion of the assessment, each participant will receive a one-on-one, confidential 30-minute phone debrief with the instructor to discuss individual results and preparation for the remainder of the workshop

• Overview of five emotional intelligence components

• Intrapersonal
• Interpersonal
• Adaptability
• Stress management
• General mood

• Understanding and developing intrapersonal skills

• Self-regard
• Emotional self-awareness
• Assertiveness
• Independence
• Self-actualization

• Understanding and developing interpersonal skills

• Empathy
• Social responsibility
• Interpersonal relationships

• Understanding and developing adaptability

• Reality testing
• Flexibility
• Problem solving

• Understanding and developing stress management

• Stress tolerance
• Impulse control

• Understanding and developing the role of general mood

• Optimism
• Happiness

• Discovering the power and roles of emotional intelligence in your life/situation

• Personal
• Professional
• What's occurred in the past
• What is possible with the future

• Tools for building toward the future and continuous improvement

• Category- and sub-category-based examples
• Individual action plan

Materials: Each participant will take an online BarOn EQi assessment prior to the program.

Time Frame: The classroom-based portion of the program is 2-3 days depending upon the size of the group and the amount of skills practice incorporated. The program also includes individual 30-minute telephone debriefs with each participant in the 2-3 weeks preceding the workshop.

This program represents one of many emotional intelligence options we offer. Please ask us about our other emotional intelligence offerings that may fit your organization's requirements.

[top]