Brought to you by Jeff Thoren, DVM  

What makes effective leaders?  Over 25 years of research about what specific factors contribute to success in the workplace has produced a body of study called emotional intelligence (EI).  This work has identified the “intangibles” that predict success in the workplace, and answered the question of why, despite equal intellectual capacity, training, and experience, some people excel while others lag behind.

Hundreds of studies have demonstrated the link between organizational climate and key performance measures such as sales growth, efficiency, productivity, and customer perceptions of service quality.  The ability to create a positive organizational climate that stimulates employees’ natural capabilities and motivations is a critical factor that drives employee performance.  And the climate experienced by employees is created primarily by the behaviors and leadership styles of their individual leader.

Here’s this month’s feature ...

The Hard Case for Soft Skills -- by Randy Gerdes

From -- Q3 Strategies (article used by permission)

Highlights from the article:

• Success driven and sustained ... starts with attention to what we call the “performance trinity,” comprising of 1) leadership & management, 2) culture & values, and 3) vision and strategy.  The third of these elements is “hard” in character, but the easiest to formulate.  The real challenge is in the first two “soft” elements. (From The Value Profit Chain, 2003)

• Satisfied, committed and loyal customers are the primary driver of company growth and profitability.  In evaluating leadership effectiveness, to start, you begin at the end.  Customer loyalty is the single most important driver of long-term financial performance.

• Satisfied, loyal, and productive employees produce customer value, leading to satisfaction, loyalty, trust, and commitment.  The relationship organizations establish with customers and the customer “experience” that they create are their only competitive advantage.  Other differentiators like product performance, quality, schedule, cost, and location can be duplicated.

• Studies show that workplace climate -- how people feel about working at your company -- can account for 20-30% of business performance.  And ... 50-70% of how employees perceive the workplace climate can be traced to the actions of one person: the leader!  Leaders must, then, understand their impact on others and how to manage it for results.

• Emotional Intelligence competencies (i.e. “soft skills”) have been found to be twice as important in contributing to leadership excellence as pure intellect and technical expertise.  Emotionally intelligent leaders are skilled at 1) monitoring their impact through self-awareness, 2) changing it for the better through self-management, 3) understanding the feelings of others through empathy, and 4) acting in ways that lift others’ performance through relationship management.

• Organizations are taking action to develop leaders, create energizing workplaces that engage their employees, and strengthen vital customer relationships.  This article provides four specific examples where, by working in the “soft” areas of the “performance trinity,” organizations have achieved “hard,” bottom line results.

For the full text article, download it now.  Randy Gerdes, the author and founder of Q3 Strategies, works with organizational leaders to consistently deliver exceptional results and lives in Tucson , AZ.  Learn more at www.q3strategies.com

Leadership is the Art of Micro-Interactions

The smallest of interactions with your colleagues at work can have an enormous influence on how they perceive you as a leader.

According to Roger R. Pearman of the Inc.com Leadership Resource Center , of the 67 established manager and leader competencies for success and the 19 behavioral clusters linked to career failure or derailment, the vast majority of behaviors are related to the management of relationships.  Among career stallers, 75% of the behaviors are relationship issues (e.g. arrogance, betrayal of trust, defensiveness).  These behaviors are aspects of emotional intelligence.

Relationships are built through micro-interactions.  Each personal interaction has one of two possible outcomes: you are seen as either inviting -- or cold and indifferent.  Those leaders with a long list of inviting interactions usually have more latitude and more options when working with others.  The perception is that you are invested in others and that you recognize that your success is tied to the work of others in the organization.  Everyone feels that they are in the same boat, pulling the oars in the same direction.

Leadership is building capacity and commitment through building relationships.  And just like a brick house, built one brick at a time, relationships that matter are built through micro-interactions.  How strong is your relationship house?

Next Month

Assessments in many different countries and across just about every industry reveal that only 13-28% of employees (depending on the study) are highly passionate about their jobs and their organizations!  We’ll look at how we can create workplace cultures that foster employee engagement.

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