Why is emotional intelligence key in project management?

Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize and regulate your emotions as well as other’s emotions. The ability to sense and understand emotions and act accordingly in order to manage the team with emotions and empathy is called emotional intelligence in project management.

According to Sodexo, The World Economic Forum identifies Emotional Intelligence as one of the top 10 competencies for 2020

According to HR Daily ,

According to HR managers, the greatest benefit of hiring an employee with the highest emotional intelligence is increasing morale.

What are the components of Emotional Intelligence?

Emotional intelligence is measured in five categories:

• Social skills: The ability to find common ground with others by maintaining friendships and good relationships with others.
• Motivation: The ability to build an interest in learning and self-improvement is called motivation. Motivation includes the increasing measure of commitment towards the task.
• Empathy: The ability to understand others’ emotions and reactions. The quality of empathy includes understanding others perception, ability to anticipate problems
• Self-regulation: The ability to hold the emotions and control one’s impulses. It also includes the ability to respond appropriately to others’ behavior and emotions.
• Self-awareness: The ability to understand one’s mood and the effects they have on others.

What is the importance of Emotional Intelligence in project management?

Project management involves a lot of communication and face to face interactions. Emotional intelligence helps the project managers to have effective communication and reduction in conflicts. Emotional intelligence plays an important role in all aspects of project management.

Emotional intelligence can enhance the effectiveness of all the knowledge areas of project management. According to PMI, The relevant concepts of emotional intelligence are applied in each of the knowledge areas.

1. Project Integration Management: In order to define the project strategy, the project manager has to be self-aware of emotions, weaknesses, and strengths. Self-awareness will help you to identify the stakeholders. The working relationship between all the stakeholders should be tied together through emotional intelligence.

2. Project Scope Management: Defining scope requires keeping everyone involved on track and adhere to the defined scope of the project. In order to define the scope, the project manager has to be self-aware and self- ejaculated. The control on self will help the project manager to define the scope and adhere to the purpose of the project.

3. Project Schedule Management: To create a schedule, a project manager should not fluctuate his mind and keep calm to make realistic estimates. Self-regulation is a must to keep values and yourself accountable.

4. Project Cost Management: Self-regulation and self-motivation play a very vital role in successfully managing the cost. The optimum utilization of the budget allotted can be managed successfully if you possess self-regulation and self-motivation traits.

5. Project Quality Management: Self-motivated individuals can successfully manage the quality of the project. Sometimes, even after submitting the quality deliverables, difficult negotiation skills are required to manage the auditors. Emotional intelligence can help you to successfully maintain the quality of the project.

6. Project Resource Management: The ability to set clear goals with the available resources can be possible by a highly motivated project manager. Resource management also involves building a good relationship with the team, understanding the team’s requirements, resolving conflicts, responding to the emotions of the team members.

7. Project Communication Management: Effective communication can be achieved by possessing empathetic behavior towards team members. Responding to the feelings and emotions of team members can help you build a good working relationship. Emotional Intelligence helps you to identify what stakeholders need and help you to respond effectively.

8. Project Risk Management: Emotional intelligence can help you to identify the source of the risk and will enable you to effectively mitigate them. Possessing Empathy can aid to put all the risk into perspective and help identify the likelihood and impact associated with risk.

9. Project Procurement Management: Having social skills can help you in procuring the required services or products. It will help you to build a strong relationship for future projects.

10. Project Stakeholder Management: Stakeholder management is one of the most crucial aspects of project management. The ability to socialize with other stakeholders will benefit to maintain a good relationship. Also, self-awareness will help to effectively manage all the stakeholders' needs and requirements.

What are the ways to improve Emotional Intelligence?

The following are the 5 ways to improve emotional intelligence:

1. Become self-aware of your emotions and feelings
2. Monitor your responses, examine them, assess your trigger points.
3. Understand the perspective of others
4. Empathize with others
5. Listen attentively
6. Develop connections with the people working with you
7. Keeping the balance between self and others’ emotional balance

What are the tools available to test our emotional intelligence?

Emotional intelligence tools enable you to recognize your emotional balance level. The tools available can be categorized in terms of,

Ability Based: Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT)

Trait-based: Bar-On EQ-i

Competency-based: ECI

Behavior-based: Genos