Emotional intelligence

• Introduction

            Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to note and control ones emotions and also identifying the emotions of others and finding a way to manage them as well. The term was introduced by John Mayer and Peter Salavoy and was later made popular by Dan Goleman. In defining emotional intelligence, the researchers argued that EI involves a person’s ability to understand their emotions and that of other people and then finding a way to manage how these emotions affect the way people interact with one another. Emotional intelligence therefore means that people not only have the ability to identify their emotions but also see how the impact they have on their behavior as well as the impact they have on others, whether positive or negative, and how they can manage their own emotions or that of others to achieve a positive outcome especially in the workplace. In the case of Uber, the transport company can rely on emotional intelligence to not only identify how emotions affect performance but also come up with ways to motivate its employees and help them achieve their personal objectives as well as the overall company goals.

• Emotional intelligence and motivation

Since emotions greatly contribute to the attitude that employees have towards a specific task or their job in general, management can find ways to appeal to the employees emotions and motivate them to be more committed and efficient. The self management building block of emotional intelligence could be of great help in assisting managers to enhance employee performance and create better job satisfaction (Goleman, 2009). Through self management, managers can identify factors like adaptability, positive outlooks, and emotional self control as well as how to become achievement oriented. Since emotional intelligence is both about the emotions of an individual as well as those from people the individual interacts with, managers can identify similar traits in employees and come up with ways to utilize them to motivate employees.

Managers can use the positive reinforcement approach to influence its employees and resolve the issue of confidentiality currently being experienced in Uber. With the advancement in technology, the company has to keep on updating its software so as to ensure the data exchanged with customers is safe and secure (Goleman, 2009). Since these changes will require employees to keep improving their skills, adaptability will be an important skill and management should focus on creating a positive attitude. Through positive reinforcement, the company can reward employees that are quick to learn new tasks. If, for example, new software is introduced, employees can be given bonuses depending on who fully learns to use it first and uses it to create transparency within the organization (Goleman, 2009). This will not only resolve the issue at Uber but also help employees adapt to the changes within the organization with a positive attitude.

• Emotional intelligence and social skills and decision making

The core concepts of emotional intelligence include; emotional awareness; the ability to work the emotions; and the ability to manage the emotions accordingly. These concepts, if well utilized, can greatly enhance the social and decision making skills of members in a team as they make people more aware of how they affect each other (Boyatzis et al, 2017). Emotional awareness makes people aware of not only their emotions but also those of other people. This helps to assess the state of mind a person is and as a result, makes it easier to engage with people in respect to what mood they are in. people who are aware of their emotions as well as those of team members are more likely to get along as they will interact in a way that is considerate of each other’s attitudes.

In relation to the ability to harness the emotions, managers can come up with ways to assign tasks to employees depending on the state of their emotions. Those who are troubled by emotions or stressed should not be assigned demanding tasks or responsibilities that require a lot of thinking (Boyatzis et al, 2017). Through emotional intelligence, managers will have an easy time making decisions especially when assigning duties. Lastly, managing ones emotions can be very helpful in improving social skills and decision making. Managers can teach employees how to calm themselves and others; when to cheer on each other and also how to keep emotions from interfering with job performance. Decisions will therefore be made without the bias of emotions and employees can peacefully coexist with one another as they respect each other’s emotions.

• Effective teams

To be successful, members of an organization must work as a team when trying to meet the company objectives. Managers must therefore ensure that the teams in the workplace possess the attributes that will be beneficial to the organization. One of the attributes that an effective should possess is clear goals (Wheelan, 2014). Goals are important as they communicate to employees what is expected of them and the role they play in meeting the company objectives. To develop positive team dynamics, the manager should make employees part of the goal setting process. If employees are involved in setting up goals and objectives, they will be more committed to bring them to fruition as they will feel responsible for something they started.

In addition to clear goals, defined roles are an important part of successful teams as they make it easier to assign duties and enhance accountability. When employees understand what they are required to do, they are able to commit to their duties because it is clear what input they add to the organization. Managers can engage with employees to assess their strengths and weaknesses before assigning roles (Wheelan, 2014). Doing so ensures that employees are assigned roles that they can carry out. Employers can also use training to enhance the skills and knowledge that the employees possess and this will go a long way into enhancing their overall performance.

• Reward systems

            In the case of uber, the most efficient reward system will be one that is based on an incentive plan aimed at rewarding employees because of both their behavior and their performance. The incentive plan will examine the attitude and commitment that employees have so as to determine their behavior as well as their overall performance in the workplace. Employees will be rewarded depending on how well they fulfill their jobs (Eerde, 2015). Performance reviews will therefore be conducted on a regular basis to compare employee performance. In relation to behavior, customer feedback as well as information from other employees will be used to determine the behavior of individuals while at their places of work. Those who qualify will reserve incentives such as gift vouchers, recognition as employee of the month, salary increment and even retreats depending on the impact that their performance and behavior has had on the overall company objectives (Eerde, 2015). The aim is to reward individual not only to appreciate their good work but also to encourage others to emulate their attitude towards work. The incentive plan will therefore be an ideal motivational tool as it will encourage those rewarded to maintain their good performance while still encouraging others to follow in their footsteps so as to get rewarded.

• Conclusion

Emotional intelligence is an important tool in management as it helps managers to not only control the impact that they have on employees but also how to utilize their emotions and motivate them to become better at their jobs. Emotions greatly affect the attitude that employee shave towards work and how well they perform their duties. By learning how to identify and manage employees’ emotional state, managers are in a better position to motivate employees as they will present instructions and guidelines to employees in a manner that is easily acceptable to them. Managers are also able to assign tasks and delegate duties to members of a team with the knowledge of who is best suited to perform specific tasks and the best people to put in a team. While it may be difficult to identify employee emotions at times, emotional intelligence is a trait that managers should possess and be able to pass it on to employees so as to assist in meeting the overall company goals and objectives. Managers must also be aware of their own emotions as identifying and managing them will make them better suited at performing their jobs and influencing others positively.

 

 

References

Boyatzis R, Davidson J, Druskat V,  Goleman D and Kohlrieser, “Building blocks of emotional   intelligence: Emotional self awareness, a primer” More Than Sound, retrieved from,             http://mindfulleadershipconference.com/wp-content/uploads/Dan-Goleman-Emotional-     Self-Awareness.pdf

Eerdie V, (2017) “Motivation and reward systems” Wiley Encyclopedia of Management, retrieved from, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/313993584_Motivation_and_Reward_Systems

Goleman, D. (2009). Emotional intelligence. New York: Bantam Books.

Wheelan, S. A. (2014). Creating Effective Teams: A Guide for Members and Leaders.