Focus Magazine - Winter 2012 - 38

SELLINGSKILLS

Making Room for Emotional Intelligence
I By Maria DalMolin

es, sales training agendas are bursting at the seams and sometimes it feels like you are trying to squeeze eight hours of content into a two-hour workshop … so, why make room for emotional intelligence (EQ)? Well, the bottom line is that, with all other things being equal, sales reps with a high EQ are more likely to gain access and have meaningful exchanges with targeted prescribers than their peers who may be lacking in that department. And, the good news is … we can absolutely teach it. To really “move the needle” on emotional intelligence, there are two primary areas of focus for training: awareness and practice, practice, practice. In preparation for any EQ training initiative, reps should rst establish a level of awareness around the current gaps in their EQ. What are their blind spots? is baseline information can be attained by measuring EQ skills through self-reporting, multi-rater or ability-based assessments. By rst gaining insight into a rep’s speci c abilities, all the training, coaching and skill practice e orts can be drilled down to the competency level. Emotional intelligence training assets can be designed and o ered through various delivery formats, such as ILT courses, eLearning modules, mLearning applications or self-directed eld action plans, with the overarching goal to teach the learner how to diagnose and correct their own EQ behaviors in order to cra targeted application strategies for improvement. Possible learning strategies include: • Modeling: As sales trainers, we need to “talk the talk” when presenting the fundamental elements of emotional intelligence. Modeling the very skills and behaviors we are teaching will ultimately build our credibility and impact in the classroom, virtual or otherwise.

• Behavioral Observation Workshops: Experiential learning activities provide the opportunity for the learner to observe and assess various interactions via video vignettes (or written communications) to develop the capacity to identify and evaluate EQ behaviors and skills. • Coaching: As with any skill development e ort, follow-up coaching and ongoing reinforcement are critical to sustained behavioral change. Field-based application activities that provide plenty of practice opportunities and clear direction for continued self-directed skill development can advance the so er skills of emotional intelligence, increase motivation and enhance EQ.

• Measurement: Post-training assessments can indicate trends in skill development, but there may not always be a standardized “checklist” by which to measure improved performance in the eld. Performance measurement criteria needs to be as customized as the activity, using indicators like gauging how something “feels,” observing a customer’s reaction to our behavior, and even assessing how the dynamics of a customer relationship have changed over time. ose are the signs of true behavior change. When developing our level of emotional intelligence, there is no “what nished looks like.” ese are life skills that can be enhanced as long as we are willing to put in the e ort, and although integrating EQ into our core training curriculum is not the only road to improved performance, it can be a powerful nudge in the right direction. I

Maria DalMolin is an instructional designer at Performance Impact, Inc. and can be reached at mdalmolin@perform-impact.com.

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Focus Magazine - Winter 2012

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