FUNDAMENTAL COMPETENCIES FOR ENHANCED SERVICE PROVISION

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EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE: FUNDAMENTAL COMPETENCIES


FOR ENHANCED SERVICE PROVISION


                          HERE ARE  SOME  EXCERPTS  FROM  WORLD CLASS STUDIES ON     FUNDAMENTAL   COMPETENCIES    FOR  ENHANCED    SERVICE   PROVISION     WITH  CORE      EI   DIMENSIONS
         HERE    POULOS     ENVISAGES   THE   EDITED  SEQUENCES  OF    THE  PROS  AND  CONS  OF    EI   RELATED    INTERVENTIONS  IN  COMPETENCY  DEVELOPMENET


Previous research indicates that one feature of successful organisations is that they are able to

create a climate for service (e.g.: Schneider & Bowen, 1993, Schneider et al, 1998). At the level

of the individual employee this manifests itself as concern for customers and awareness of the

practices and behaviours that are expected by management. In effect, these qualities may be

expressed as broad interpersonal competencies such as communication skills (e.g. Ostell, 1996),

empathy (e.g.: Zeithaml, Parasuraman & Berry, 1990, p. 26) and emotional labour (e.g.:

Hochschild.1993, Morris & Feldman. 1996). At the organisational level, a climate for service

requires reinforcement through the implementation and support of appropriate employee

behaviours based on clear ‘service quality specifications’ (i.e. from the SERVQUAL model –

Parasuraman et al. 1988). This also involves genuine concern for employees as ‘internal

customers’ (eg: Schneider et al.1998, Johnson 1996), and is facilitated by an appropriate

leadership style. It is further encouraged by empowerment of the employee, which is largely

achieved through removal of obstacles and ‘inhibitors’ such as inappropriate HR policies,

restrictive management style, etc.



In this article we propose that the relatively new concept of Emotional Intelligence (or ‘EQ’ -

e.g. Goleman, 1998) captures many of the key competencies involved in creating and

maintaining an appropriate climate for service. This approach suggests that individuals vary in

their capacity to process, regulate and manage information of an emotional nature, and is further

supported by recent evidence that demonstrates specific areas in the brain for this emotional

processing (LeDoux, 1998). By and large, emotional experiences are intricately related to

maintaining social self-images and psychological aspects of the self such as values, beliefs,

needs, goals and expectations.



However, emotional intelligence is not about emotions per se , but more about the relationship

between thoughts, feelings and behaviour. It may be seen as a measure of the degree to which

individuals vary in their ability to perceive, understand and regulate their own emotions and

those of others, and integrate these with their thoughts and actions. Therefore, individuals with

high EQ display strong self-awareness and interpersonal skill. They are empathic, adaptable and

able to cope with pressure, and generally experience less stress and better health and morale

(Slaski & Cartwright, 2002). All these attributes are highly desirable for customer facing

positions, and enhance the type of transformational management style required to create a

positive service climate (e.g.: Barling et al., 2000). As evidence also suggests that EQ is a better

predictor of management success than IQ, and that it can be developed, it seems appropriate to

incorporate this concept into staff selection, performance management and training policies.



The key to successful development of emotional intelligence lies in an emphasis on self-

awareness. We argue that attempts to address social skills without the development of self-

awareness are fruitless. In a sense, effective behaviour is the authentic expression of 'who we




are'. Thus, high levels of self-awareness among organisational employees are seen as essential

in the creation of enhanced climate for service.



In order to test this hypothesis, sixty managers from a large retail chain were invited to attend an

EQ development programme. This programme was delivered for one day per week over a four-

week period. During this time trainees were encouraged to develop awareness of aspects of

themselves, and their relationships with others, through an examination of their emotional

experiences. In this way trainees were able to acquire a greater sense of 'who I am' in terms of

their own personal values, beliefs, attitudes, expectations, goals, and ambitions. In so doing they

were also able to develop a greater understanding of others from this perspective.



Participants completed research questionnaires prior to the programme, and again six-months

following the programme. The questionnaires were designed to measure EQ, stress, health,

morale, and quality of working life. In addition, participants' line-managers were asked to

complete a questionnaire examining management performance both before and six-months

following the programme. This instrument was based on the organisation’s own 'critical success

factor' model of performance and included a number of items highly related to service

orientation.



To fully test the effectiveness of the programme, a further sixty managers acted as a control-

group. The control-group completed the questionnaires but did not participate in the EQ

development programme. Results showed that after six-months, participants in the programme

demonstrated statistically significant improvements on all the research variables in comparison

with the control-group i.e. emotional intelligence, stress, general health, morale, quality of

working life and management performance (Slaski & Cartwright, 2002b). A follow-up survey

up to 18 months later involved interviewing managers to ascertain the impact of EQ development

on their behaviour. Below are some comments recorded from these interviews:



"A whole new world has emerged - 'other peoples feelings'. At work I have had the most

productive six-months I have ever had, I've handled pressure and disappointments in very

positive ways". D.B.



"The EQ programme has helped me develop a clearer sense of my own personal

responsibilities. It has also helped me to establish purpose in my life, and I am happier

with myself. I now seem to have created more time by worrying less, and as a

consequence life has slowed down. I now bring my whole self to work rather than

leaving part of me at the door, and I feel both my relationships and my performance have

improved". K.D.



"I was previously not aware of the impact of emotions, consequently I have become more

emotionally observant which has helped me with relationships both at work and in my

private life." J.B.



In conclusion, it is clear that those organisations that are successful in today's dynamic business

world take a more proactive approach to developing a positive service climate. It follows that

excellent service, with positive emotional content, is most likely to be facilitated by employees

who are emotionally self-aware - and who understand others on a more emotional level. This




ability has been described as emotional intelligence. In purposefully developing emotional

intelligence, managers have been able to acquire greater self-understanding, have demonstrated

better health, morale and quality of work life, and have been able to foster and build closer

working relationships. We argue that it is crucial for organisational leaders to recognise the

importance of emotionally intelligent behaviour, and to actively reward it. Positive reinforcement

of an emotionally intelligent environment will enable the development of a service-orientated

climate which is authentic in nature, and therefore more effective. On this basis, it seems

appropriate that the role of emotional intelligence is taken into consideration when devising

organisational policies, processes and procedures - particularly around staff selection, training

and development, and performance management.
 

             THE   CONFORMITY     OF  THE    EI    ATTRIBUTES WITH  THE  THE   CORE  COMPETECNCY   CREDENTIALS   ARE  STILL  OPEN  TO  BE   STUDIED   AND  EVALUATED.

          POULOS   CALLS  FOR  FURTHER    PERSEVERENCES
 AND   EXPLORATIONS  TO  THE  DEEPER  LEVEL  FROM  THE  GLOBAL  RESEARCHERS    AND    ACADAMICIANS.



REFERENCES



"EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE "   BY         DANIEL    GOLEMAN

Philip Bardzil (0)161 200 8786

philip.bardzil@umist.ac.uk

Centre for Research in Work & Organizational Psychology
THANKS FROM POULOS