Hiring For Emotional Intelligence

When assessing new talent, emotional intelligence emerges as a crucial soft skill sought in the workplace.

The ongoing debate between the importance of cognitive intelligence (IQ) and emotional intelligence (EQ) for career success is shifting towards a holistic view that combines both hard and soft skills. This aligns with psychologist Howard Gardner’s theory that intelligence is multifaceted, encompassing various types and strengths.

Historically, recruitment has emphasized hard skills, focusing on job-specific abilities, knowledge, and experience. However, this approach often overlooks soft skills, which are critical manifestations of EQ.

A recent survey by the World Economic Forum highlights emotional intelligence as one of the top ten skills demanded by employers. But what is the essence of emotional intelligence?

Coined as a transformative concept by the Harvard Business Review in the mid-nineties, emotional intelligence (EQ or EI) contrasts with IQ by measuring one’s ability to understand and manage emotions. Figures like Princess Diana, Richard Branson, Oprah, and even the fictional Yoda exemplify high EQ, suggesting its significant role in personal and professional success. EQ aids in managing relationships empathetically and judiciously, distinct from the knowledge-based hard skills.

Dr. Ben Palmer of Genos International outlines emotional intelligence’s core functions as perceiving and understanding our emotions, empathizing with others, expressing emotions, and managing emotions in ourselves and others. Despite its trendiness, studies from Harvard, Stanford, and the Carnegie Foundation attribute up to 87% of success to emotional intelligence.

Organizations like Amazon, Tesla, and American Express recognize the value of EQ in recruitment, team development, and shaping company culture, using it to drive organizational success.

What are the five key soft skills linked to emotional intelligence?

Soft skills is an umbrella term that describes key personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and harmoniously with other people. Unlike hard (technical) skills, they’re not necessarily something you’ll learn in a course, like data analytics or programming. Instead, they reflect your communication style, work ethic, and work style. In commercial settings, soft skills is a term often used interchangeably with emotional intelligence. While they’re not quite the same thing, there are five key soft skills that someone with a high EQ will almost certainly possess.

Self-Awareness

Known as the ability to recognize and understand your own emotions, hiring managers look for candidates who are self-aware because they tend to be organized and proactive. Without a good level of self awareness in the workplace, employees find it difficult to manage their time and perform at their peak on a regular basis.  A candidate who is self-aware may:

• Ask for constructive feedback from their peers
• Implement techniques like meditation or journalling to help pay attention to their thoughts and emotions
• Work on personal development through goal-setting, a growth mindset, and pursuing passions

Self-Regulation

Often working hand-in-hand with self-awareness, self-regulation is the ability to regulate and manage your emotions. Of course, you need to be able to recognise them first, which is where self-awareness comes in. If you can’t self-regulate, you can’t self-soothe, making you more prone to outbursts or inappropriate responses.   A candidate who is able to self-regulate may:

• Approach a challenge as an opportunity
• Can soothe difficult emotions via breathwork, positive self-talk, or cognitive reframing
• Communicate clearly and take action to diffuse conflict amongst team members

Social Skills

Workplaces are often filled with a wide variety of personalities, backgrounds, opinions and beliefs. As such, good social skills help us to build meaningful relationships and connect with others, even if we might not agree with them all of the time.   A candidate with strong social skills may:

• Demonstrate active listening
• Show interest in others and ask open-ended questions
• Communicate confidently verbally and through body language

Empathy

The world would likely be a far better place if we all embraced empathy a little bit more. As the ability to understand how others are feeling, or to metaphorically be able to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, high empathy levels helps workplaces to achieve positive outcomes between clients and co-workers alike.  A candidate with empathy may:

• Share their own feelings and aren’t afraid to be vulnerable
• Show extra care or concern for someone who’s suffering
• Engage in a social or community cause

Motivation

Almost every employer would say that they hold motivated staff in high regard, but this soft skill should come from a good place and not out of a need for validation. Motivated employees can lead to increased productivity and allow organizations to achieve higher levels of output, while cheering each other on.   A candidate with motivation may:

• Take initiative and be innovative
• Set small, measurable goals
• Celebrate positive results

It is clear to all that hard or technical skills are essential in determining a candidate’s ability to perform well in a job. However, if you’re not hiring emotionally intelligent people, you’re not offering your company or your client access to the talent they deserve.