HIRING EMOTIONALLY INTELLIGENT EMPLOYEES

Transcription

1 HIRING EMOTIONALLY INTELLIGENT EMPLOYEES WHY EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE MATTERS IN RECRUITMENT by Aim Healthcare Recruiting 2017 AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING

2 Contents Introduction... 2 Why Emotional Intelligence Matters... 4 The Importance of Hiring Using Emotional Intelligence... 8 Why Emotional Intelligence in Staff Reflects Success AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 1

3 Introduction For years, businesses have been looking to find the best ways to make hiring easier and more accurate than ever. It s very easy to hire someone who seems like the right fit but then other, undetermined, or unconsidered, factors come into play. For many top businesses today, one of the most powerful considerations to take into account is known as Emotional Intelligence. This term has become hugely important within many business dimensions, and plays a key role in hiring mature, intelligent, determined staff who could have the skills needed to one day fully take charge and lead. According to Forbes, one of the primary skills seen in someone with high Emotional Intelligence is an ability to handle critique without rebuttal. Amongst other things, high emotional intelligence shows someone who is capable of leading, of taking critique, finding where they need to improve most, and taking the next steps to locating solutions others might not have had the clarity of thought to see AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 2

4 For any employer, though, it s hard to determine just how to find the emotional intellect of a potential candidate. Understanding and engaging with such a challenging topic means utilizing the same kind of thinking as many of the top Fortune 500 companies out there. In this guide, we re going to look at why 58% of our job performance comes down to Emotional Intelligence. There s a reason why so many big hitters, in all industries, are looking to actively put in place such programs. Through the likes of Psychometric Testing, firms are now making sure the people that they hire are capable of delivering not just today, but in the long-term. With that in mind, let s take a closer look at why, when a business needs its staff, knowing they are emotionally intelligent can play a pretty key role in the successful development and improvement of your business as a whole AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 3

5 Why Emotional Intelligence Matters Emotional intelligence matters mostly on the basis that it helps to see beyond just grades or academic achievement. Someone can be great at learning a topic at University, but how do they handle the task itself when reality kicks in and the pressure is on? This is why firms such as Google are so certain on the power of Emotional Intelligence. Not only does emotional intelligence negate the need to take just school success into account, but it helps to show another side to a person that a typical CV or working history could not show. The most common signs of someone with high emotional intelligence can include: The ability to be aware of both their own role and the role of those around them, and how each role makes the other work. A desire to keep on their feet, to maintain activity and to be ready to take action when they must. If a task is not handed to someone with emotional 2017 AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 4

6 intellect, they are mature enough to innovate and find a task themselves. Motivational skills that can be used on a regular basis to help their emotional intellect strengthen and be used accordingly. This allows them to use their emotional intellect to rub off on those around them, too. Develop an emphatic response to those who are not quite hitting the levels of performance that they should. By helping to use their emotional intelligence to help others overcome their own weaknesses, it s a natural leadership trait. Social qualities that makes them easy to get on with, regardless of the background or personality of the person that they are dealing with. In essence, someone with emotional intelligence is more than just an intelligent person. People with emotional intellect can have less academic expertise than someone else on the team, but they show a willingness to adapt, to learn, to take criticism and to always chase improvement. Those who lack emotional maturity can become stifled and frustrated 2017 AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 5

7 at critique, and will tend to look for someone to blame or an alternative reason. Rather than having the motivation to improve, they look to cast the blame onto other people to avoid either embarrassment or loss of trust from superiors. Today, in the high-stakes world of Fortune 500 companies and business in general, mistakes have to be learned from. People who are not willing to change their minds, to learn from their experiences and to listen to those who know best are unlikely to succeed at the highest levels of business. It s actually why, for many businesses, targeting EQ is more important than IQ. IQ shows us someone is intelligent and is capable of learning. EQ, though, shows someone who is capable of improving on more than just an academic but a professional and a human level. For most businesses where change is perpetual, that is so important to note. Someone can learn about the requirements of the job, or how to use particular systems or software. What they cannot learn, though, is the ability to 2017 AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 6

8 regulate their own minds, and pacify their reactions when something does not go as they had originally intended. While many businesses look to concentrate on improving the EQ of a member of staff, that s much harder than improving their grasp and skill of the topic at and. You can show an emotionally mature person how to improve and get to grips with a system. You cannot, however, show an emotionally immature individual how to become more reliable and less likely to take criticism personally. Businesses that are successful today are so because they have a strong company culture. That culture is kept in place by mature people who are willing to adapt and improve to fit that module. It s why so many businesses big and small look to use EQ metrics when hiring. How, though, do businesses look to analyze and understand such topics? 2017 AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 7

9 The Importance of Hiring Using Emotional Intelligence Today, most businesses who see the value of EQ will look to employ some form of testing program. From psychometric testing to a simple question and answer session with unique scenarios businesses find all manner of ways to find out who they are hiring. Today, having a sparkling CV is not enough as an employer, you want to see something a little bit more diverse and creative from the people that you are now hiring. So, why should you look to hire employees who have a high level of emotional intelligence? What kind of factors help you to determine if someone displays a level of emotional maturity that some of the other candidates did not? For one, make sure you don t misinterpret a strong personality as emotional intellect. Personality is our thoughts and our behavioral patterns, but emotional intellect is your ability to control your emotions and to be aware of how they might be perceived AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 8

10 Someone might show a lot of character and charm in the interview, but emotional intelligence looks more at how they handle relationships and how they take responsibility, or help others handle responsibility, in the face of adversity. A good sign of someone with high emotional intellect is someone who does not seek gratitude or praise when they do well. Thy look to get the job done, rather than looking for praise for their success every step of the way. If you re carrying out an interview and the person seems to want glorification for previous achievements, it s not a sign of high emotional maturity. Also, they need to be able to understand what makes someone else who they work alongside motivated. This is part of the social strength: they know what the others they work with need, and do everything they can do to facilitate those needs. Rather than getting frustrated that others cannot reach their level, they extend the hand of assistance to make it possible AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 9

11 They tend to be more motivated simply by meeting their objectives. While those who lack emotional maturity slack off and take it easy when they reach a level of professional progress, others continue to stay motivated to see it through to the end. They maintain efficiency and motivation regardless of the speed or success of the project. These kinds of attribute are more easily noticed than you might imagine. When carrying out any kind of business interview, you can quickly start to see these attributes shine through. It usually comes from how they speak, or how they react when asked about certain elements of their professional past. For most businesses today, though, emotional intelligence trumps prior experience or typical intellect. An inability to handle a teamwork-based environment, to handle change or to manage critique are the most common reasons for a business struggling to build the right kind of environment and results AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 10

12 The more time that your business puts into understanding emotional intellect, the more likely it is that solutions can be found and continual progress can be made AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 11

13 Why Emotional Intelligence in Staff Reflects Success So, as an employer, why should you go the extra mile to ensure that your business can hire people with the attributes we have discussed so far? Because those most successful in leadership mirrors these traits. Many people make rather serious mistakes in the workplace, and maintain a poor attitude, because the leadership who they base themselves off also lack emotional maturity. It s a common problem in employment, and reflects the leadership vacuum that many businesses surprisingly find themselves dealing with. A business has to showcase the best version of itself, and that is made most possible by having those in charge of employment holding high levels of emotional maturity. Those with this kind of mind-set tend to find it easier to spot those who are similarly minded, and will be more likely to avoid hiring 2017 AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 12

14 people who are not suited to the high-octane nature of the businesses operations. A high level of EQ can reflect well on the whole business. Just some of the benefits that can be seen in a business that puts EQ ahead of other employment metrics can include: A more productive, positive workplace. With high general EQ, people can be more likely to take responsibility for their actions, to work as a group to get around these issues, and to resolve problems. It stops elitism in the workplace, too. Those who are hired for academic expertise tend to be less likely to want to learn, to share success with others, and to work as a group to find a solution. With high emotional maturity, everyone works together to improve as a team, not just individually. Productivity soars when you have a team who can harmonize and learn from one another. It might make sense to have people with industry expertise, but if it come at a cost of teamwork or 2017 AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 13

15 professional maturity it can be a move that fails to spark your business into life. Your organization s staff are also the ones who make your presence felt to potential customers. Emotional maturity allows for bespoke, detailed responses that takes the concerns of the client and answers them genuinely. Add in the fact that it also means you know clients are getting support from those who are unflappable and can handle tough, unpredictable questioning, and it becomes much easier to keep customer satisfaction consistently high. With all of this in mind, then, it should be easier to see why emotional, not academic, intelligence is needed to make a business succeed. The model of operation and the industry needs can be learned, harnessed, and improve in any emotionally mature member of staff. You cannot, though, make a talented but immature member of staff grow up and learn to take responsibility AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 14

16 Any business that is ambitious and certain about their position in the world can learn a lot from emotional intelligence. Make it a priority, and your business can find that old errors and a lack of progression can become problems which are well and truly consigned to the dustbin of history! Finding emotional intelligence can be hard as an employer, but it s easier to determine maturity emotionally than it is to determine academic expertise. Pay more attention to the reaction and the kind of answers provided when a potential employee is challenged on past failure what kind of message do you get back when they response? Keep that in mind and you should be able to start making smarter hires. Don t hire based on experience or success; hire based on how well they fit in with the emotional intelligence and ambitions of the rest of your staff AIM HEALTHCARE RECRUITING 15