By Nickie Freedman
According to a leading business professor, turnover can cost companies an average of an employee's entire yearly salary. And what’s the cause of high turnover? The lack of emotional intelligence each person possesses. Ask a group of experts what defines emotional intelligence and you will get a variety of answers, ranging from motivating and inspirational to ambitious and inquisitive. Yet a steady stream of research over the past decade has consistently identified emotional intelligence as a much more powerful predictor of professional success than IQ or expertise.
Emotionally intelligent people maintain accountability and are committed to ethical business practices while they increase a company's profits. To be an emotionally intelligent person is to make smart decisions, both for a business and for society.
As a professional consultant and trainer of both hard and soft skills, I’ve worked with many human resource professionals and legal administrators who understand the importance of investing in their staff. They know that a lot of workplace problems can be alleviated through emotional intelligence, knowledge of new skills and understanding behaviors, and genuinely want to help their staff grow both professionally and personally. They also realizes that a benefit such as training also helps the staff realize their true importance in the firm: staff sees that the firm is not just ‘talking the talk’ and paying lip service to them, but follows through and actually invests money in them. It not only increases their significance to the firm, but also builds their self-esteem and respect for the partners because they feel valued. And firms with staff with this type of high emotional intelligence are proven to have much lower turnover rates.
Soft Issues Have Hard Consequences™
Many firms send their staff to hard skills training (computer training, process efficiency, etc.), but prioritize soft skill training (conflict management, personal development, teamwork building, etc.) for attorneys. On the contrary, staff actually is in just as much need for training on those important soft issues (dealing with emotional intelligence) as attorneys.
Many times, attorneys and administrators have been through many soft skills courses in college or during management training and take courses via the firm, whereas a lot of the administrative staff actually needs it more. Why? Because they usually haven’t had training and are dealing with others who are usually in the same boat – they lack the proper emotional intelligence to make smart decisions. They interact on a daily basis, and in a confined area, with others who are also frustrated by the same problems.
For instance, conflict management is sorely needed in most firms. The biggest problem I hear from administrators is workplace cliques, gossip, and other unprofessional attitudes. These problems seem to happen in firms primarily made up of women more than those with a lot of male employees. (I believe the reason for that is that women are taught from childhood to be ‘nice’ and ‘sweet’ and end up manipulating or becoming passive-aggressive to express their unhappiness, anger or conflict with another person.)
The real truth is that conflict is inevitable when we work with others, whether it’s personal or business issues. Unfortunately, many people have no idea how to deal with it and try ignoring it, bulldozing their way through it, or making everyone else wrong. However, conflict can actually be productive if it’s handled appropriately and timely. Training can build understanding about what conflict really is, teach the difference between positive and negative conflict, determine the underlying problem, learn how to manage the conflict quickly, and build consensus in the workplace.
This type of soft skills training can have huge consequences in the life of the firm. Work can be tough enough without all the extra drama that different personalities can bring. Teaching your staff these types of soft skills can make them aware of inappropriate and ineffectual behavior, and give them the impetus for change. Many times people just aren’t aware of how they’re behaving or the negative consequences that can result from it.
But what about the budget?
So the administrator works with the trainer and comes up with a great curriculum that will really help the staff learn new skills and improve existing ones. She receives all the information and approaches the partners for their approval. What happens next? I wish I could say that the partners jump at the chance to invest in their staff and reap the rewards, but unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Many times, management bemoans the fact that it would ‘really like to release the funds for something this important, but it just isn’t there.’
Nothing speaks louder than money – and staff knows when the firm undervalues them. The money saved by lower turnover rates because of proper emotional intelligence training is much more than this type of training usually costs. It’s almost like the chicken-egg problem. Without the training, the turnover remains high, and the turnover remains high without the training.
What type of emotional intelligence training is appropriate? There are many kinds, but some come to mind: conflict management, teambuilding, professional and legal ethics, effective communication skills, professionalism, morale building, etc. You should check with training companies for resources and ideas.
Train to Retain
Staff is another facet on the image of the company, and training your staff can reap many rewards – better-equipped employees, higher emotional intelligence, less turnover rates, and a calmer workplace. Retaining well-developed employees is key for any successful business. Make your legal business the success it can be – train staff on issues that make a difference.
Nickie Freedman, PHR, owns Legally Large, a training and consulting firm specializing in the BUSINESS of practicing law. To receive her “Work Smarter” tips, contact her via www.LegallyLarge.com, Nickie@LegallyLarge.com or directly at 512.791.9644.
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