Journal of Healthcare Management - July/August 2014 - (Page 246)

J o u r n al of H ealt H care M anage Ment 59:4 J uly /a ugust 2014 greatest changes in the delivery of healthcare in this country since the introduction of Medicare. For many leaders, maintaining the status quo in their leadership style simply will not get the job done. W H Y E M O T I O N A L LY A N D B E H A V I O R A L LY I N T E L L I G E N T LEADERSHIP? In 2003, the Harvard Business Review examined data supporting emotional intelligence. In that article, it stated that: In hard times, the soft stuff goes away. But emotional intelligence, it turns out, isn't so soft. If emotional obliviousness jeopardizes your ability to perform, fend off aggressors or be compassionate in a crisis, no amount of attention to the bottom line will protect your career. Emotional intelligence isn't a luxury you can dispense with in tough times. It's a basic tool that, deployed with finesse, is the key to professional success. While some leaders may deem the subject of emotional intelligence to be too "squishy" for any practical value in leading people, enlightened leaders in business, industry, and even the military are finding strong value and return on investment in not just understanding emotional intelligence but incorporating it into their leadership style. A study by the Center for Creative Leadership (2010) reported that the need to improve skills in leading employees and work teams was a top priority among senior healthcare leaders. However, those same leaders indicated that such skills-including self-awareness-were rated the lowest of those regularly demonstrated by leaders in healthcare. In his book Primal Leadership, Daniel Goleman (2002, p. 8) refers to a concept he calls "leadership contagion." He states that "people take their emotional cues from the top. Even when the boss isn't highly visible-for example, the CEO who works behind closed doors on an upper floor-his attitude affects the moods of his direct reports, and a domino effect ripples throughout the organization's emotional climate." Imagine a leader who feels (understandably) overwhelmed by the implications of the ACA on his organization and unintentionally projects his angst onto his direct reports. Those direct reports then project that angst onto the people they supervise, and the entire organization is affected. Of course, leadership contagion can also work in a positive manner. And that is where emotionally and behaviorally intelligent leadership can have a strong impact on an organization, starting at the top. W H AT I S E M O T I O N A L A N D B E H AV I O R A L I N T E L L I G E N C E ? Because emotion is an internal process and cannot be seen by others (other than in the behaviors that those emotions generate), leaders must move from emotional to behavioral intelligence in order to realize the desired effects. And this is where the 246

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Journal of Healthcare Management - July/August 2014

Journal of Healthcare Management - July/August 2014
Contents
Interview With Charles R. Evans, FACHE, President of the International Health Services Group and Senior Advisor at Jackson Healthcare
The Most Effective Leadership Style for the New Landscape of Healthcare
Exploring Obstacles to Success for Early Careerists in Healthcare Leadership
Decisions Through Data: Analytics in Healthcare
Sustainable Competitive Advantage for Accountable Care Organizations
Hospital Characteristics Associated With Achievement of Meaningful Use
The Effect of Professional Culture on Intrinsic Motivation Among Physicians in an Academic Medical Center
Abstract from the Academy of Management

Journal of Healthcare Management - July/August 2014