THE EQ EQUATION

The business case for empathy and compassion as indispensable to the workplace in uncertain times

CLAIRE WILSON

As workplaces navigate the pressures of a recessionary environment and the lingering impacts of the pandemic, the business case for fostering emotional intelligence (EI) in the workplace is becoming more evident, says Philip Steenkamp, president and vice-chancellor of Royal Roads University.

“It’s increasingly important that leaders and organizations not only have the IQ [intelligence quotient] and the technical skills they need for particular jobs, but they also have emotional intelligence. It’s becoming more obvious that you need both rational and emotional skills in order to be able to manage organizations and workplaces right now,” he says.

The uncertainty and stress of events like the pandemic create “something of a perfect storm,” says Daniel Skarlicki, Edgar F. Kaiser professor of organizational behaviour and director of the Montalbano Centre for Responsible Leadership Development at the University of British Columbia’s Sauder School of Business.

The result is increased workplace loneliness, which can have a negative effect on employees’ ability to collaborate and share, Skarlicki says.

“EI was originally coined and defined as the ability to monitor one’s own feelings and emotions, to discriminate them and use this to help you guide your thinking and your actions,” he says, referencing the 1990 work of emotional intelligence pioneers Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer.

The modern definition of EI, attributed to psychologist and best-selling author Daniel Goleman, is rooted in a person’s ability to manage their feelings so that those feelings are expressed appropriately and effectively.

In his work, Goleman points to research from Harvard Business School that determined that emotional quotient (EQ) counts for twice as much as IQ and technical skills combined in understanding who will be successful. In 2003, the Harvard Business Review reported that 80 per cent of the skills that differentiate top performers from others is linked to EI.

While many refer to it as a “soft skill,” Steenkamp says he defines it as a “core skill.”

and vice chancellor

Royal Roads University

increasingly engaging in custom training around values-based leadership, ethics and EI, Steenkamp says.

“When you talk to employers, they say: ‘We are looking for people who can communicate well, who can collaborate, who are good problem solvers, who can work in teams,’” he says. “Many of those are characteristics of emotional intelligence.”

In the last five years, Salh says her team has also seen greater interest in developing EI within various workplaces. To foster this skill within a team, the process starts with leadership, Salh says.

According to Skarlicki, the ability to be a successful leader is rooted in one’s ability to relate to other individuals, whether they are employees or clients. Those who can utilize this skill have higher salaries.

“It is increasingly indispensable in today’s organizations and workplaces, given the complexity of the issues that we are all dealing with,” he explains.

But can EI be taught? According to all those who spoke to BIV Magazine, it can.

“There’s lots and lots of studies that are showing that through various interventions and training, you can increase emotional intelligence,” Starlicki says.

Sahar Salh is the head of facilitation and programs at Stride Leadership, a Coquitlam-based provider of executive coaching and professional and leadership development. Based on Salh’s experience, she says she believes that EI, like any other skill, can be developed with practice.

“It’s something that you need to be mindful of every day in your practice. But it absolutely, in my opinion and in the work that I’ve done in the past, can be taught,” she said.

When developing EI, the key to success is readiness and self regulation. Learning how to utilize empathy requires a level of self-awareness and the ability to accept the emotional challenge, according to Salh.

Unlike many other skills, EI is not easily measured, though the results of training can be seen in higher employee engagement, higher satisfaction and job retention, she says.

“Because we can’t see those, it’s a bit of a bigger challenge to get the participants to the line. Once you start getting more into the trenches with it, and really understand what is being taught, that’s when you get buy in and that’s when it becomes an easier process,” she says.

The drive to implement this skill within various workplaces can be seen in the uptick of interest in Royal Roads programs that have an emphasis on EI, according to Steenkamp.

The biggest increases in interest have been seen in programs like executive coaching, which has EI as a core value, as well as in programs offered at the School of Leadership Studies. Additionally, organizations are

“The reason why they have higher salaries is they have greater political skill. They can read the room properly and they’re so sure they’re socially attuned, they kind of pick up on things. They don’t blurt out something that’s going to offend others,” he says.

“It’s important to say that emotional intelligence trumps … cognitive intelligence when it comes to leadership.”

Janice Abbott, CEO of Atira Women’s Resource Society and a 2019 BIV Influential Women in Business Award winner, says that EI is an indispensable skill when communicating with employees and the women Atira works with.

“I hope that I have empathy and compassion for both the women who work here and the women that we support. Which influences how I make decisions at the end of the day,” she says

“I think we tend to think of emotional intelligence as one way to be and it’s not – it’s complex and multidimensional. You can both have empathy, compassion, and you can have boundaries as well. In fact, that’s healthy.”

Atira started prioritizing lived experience as an asset in the 1990s, allowing employees to draw on shared life experiences when working.

“Often, what comes with that life experience is trauma, and trauma that kind of lives in your body and can manifest at times of other stress in your life. So you’re doing well for a long time, and then there’s a stressful incident in your life, and that trauma kind of surfaces,” Abbott says. “Being able to recognize and lead with your heart matters in those situations. In fact, it’s everything.”

Abbott says she believes that if a leader is not able to demonstrate EI in the workplace, it can make it hard for employees to foster that on their own.

“We have to constantly teach ourselves and remind ourselves that empathy and compassion are paramount in the work that we do,” she says.

“It’s easy to feel just hopeless and fatigued – emotionally fatigued by everything right now. And I think that the only way forward is teaching ourselves empathy, compassion and hope in all aspects of our lives.”