“Think carefully about change and the impact it has on people.” That’s the relevant advice John Botha offers to leaders and managers in the latest webinar arranged by the Temporary Employment Services Division (TESD). The Leading and Managing with Emotional Intelligence webinar shares a business model for enhanced success, resilience and adaptability.
Botha kicks off with the sobering comment that emotional intelligence, or EQ, is the most missing ingredient in corporate South Africa today. While technology has made huge strides, you cannot totally remove human beings from business. Especially in TES, humans are the lifeblood[AR1] of the industry. Therefore, to optimally function leaders need to understand people and be good at working with them. On average, humans make 17 000 work-related decisions daily. The quality of those decisions will either propel an organisation towards its strategic objectives or steer them away.
The CCMA receives 170 000 referrals a year which Botha believes are mainly caused by low EQ. “Mindset drives our thinking, conduct and habits.” To decrease labour law risk and number of referrals, companies should capacitate leaders, managers and staff effectively in EQ awareness. High EQ in company culture ultimately makes for a productive, happier, motivated work force. The webinar gives you the opportunity to examine your individual strengths, weaknesses and to build strong working relationships.
Disorder, unpredictable changes such as the global pandemic, financial loss, economic instability, personal difficulties are challenges we all face. “It is human nature to respond emotionally,” remarks Botha. Organisations are affected by how their people emotionally respond to disruption. These industry disruptions are rapid; overnight changes like natural disasters or social unrest can derail companies. Resilience and quick response are vital for an organisation to stay alive and relevant. Limited EQ inhibits empathising with clients and co-workers as well as discourages a growth mindset. A company may be mighty in operational excellence, but can it respond to modern shifting behaviours? Smooth operation combined with an EQ focus on people creates trusting relationships which minimises resistance and distance.
Organisations implementing EQ-aligned operations are far more productive, profitable and valuable to their employees. In the workplace, people do not “check-in” their divorce, financial problems, health problems and religious problems at the front desk,” says Botha. Most people are not walking in with the mindset to get the job done. Managers must understand the interconnectivity between emotions and tasks. Research findings on workforce.com demonstrate that there is a direct correlation between increased job performance when employees are high in EQ. EQ is responsible for 58% of performance in all job types, and 90% of top performers are high in EQ.
Enjoy the full webinar hosted by the TESD: https://tesd.org.za/2022/11/09/webinar-leading-and-managing-with-emotional-intelligence/. The TESD provides TES companies with a stakeholder forum to regulate this specialised industry, serve the needs of their clients and protect the rights of their candidates in a legally compliant environment. The TESD is consistently informing and empowering their members to contribute to the growth of their industry.