The document discusses an assessment process for leadership styles that evaluates a client's current leadership style and develops a new style tailored to their strengths and objectives. It assesses leadership competencies, emotional intelligence, and social intelligence through 360-degree surveys and tests to identify areas for development and facilitate becoming an effective future leader with strong interpersonal skills. In particular, the assessments evaluate leadership competencies, emotional intelligence using the MSCEIT test, and social intelligence to help leaders improve engagement and performance through their interactions with others.

1. Intelligent Leadership Styles
Assessing
Competencies
and
Interpersonal Skills

2. Focus on Leadership Styles
The primary focus of our
assessment process is on
evaluating the effectiveness of
the client’s current leadership
style and then, developing a new
one more appropriate for this
leader’s
strengths, weaknesses, and
development objectives.
To find the best leadership style, we must consider the future
leadership competencies, emotional intelligence, and social
intelligence this leader will develop. In essence, we document and
measure the “As Is” leader, then define the “To Be” leader and
lastly, facilitate the development of leadership competencies and
interpersonal skills required to become that “To Be” leader.

3. Leadership Competencies
Leadership competencies are leadership skills
and behaviors that create the potential to
produce superior levels of leadership
effectiveness. Essential leadership
competencies and global competencies have
been defined by researchers. While some
leadership competencies are essential to all
firms, many organizations have defined
leadership competencies that are distinctive
to their particular organization given its
unique business strategy and organizational
culture. This is why we provide our clients
with the option of using their competency
definitions or our generic definitions to assess
leadership competencies.

4. Assessing Leadership Competencies
We assess leadership competencies
using a 360-degree online survey
methodology that will maintain the
anonymity of those who complete
surveys.
This approach permits our client to
compare their own assessment of
their leadership competencies with
those around them. The client
decides who he/she will invite to
participate in this assessment.

5. Younger Leaders Have the Biggest Competency Gaps
As a rule of thumb, we find those with less
managerial experience tend to have larger
“gaps” between their own assessments of
their leadership competencies and the
assessments of those around them. One
implication being managerial experience
tends to produce leadership competencies
through active learning.
Another implication is that as one moves
higher in the organizational hierarchy, the
most important opportunities to improve
leadership effectiveness lies with the
leadership skills and abilities of emotional
intelligence and social intelligence.

6. Assessing Leadership Skills and Abilities
To pursue the important leadership objectives of improving staff
engagement and increasing the discretionary effort of employees that will
result in higher levels of performance, leaders must possess outstanding
interpersonal skills. The two best indicators of interpersonal skills for leaders
are emotional intelligence ad social intelligence. Our Intelligent Leadership
Styles program assesses both emotional intelligence and social intelligence.
To assess emotional intelligence, we use the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso
Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT).
The MSCEIT is the only ability test
of emotional intelligence
available. Other tests of
emotional intelligence are what
we refer to self-report
tests, meaning you must be highly
self aware to accurately answer
direct questions about your EQ
abilities.

7. MSCEIT is the Best Test of EQ
We believe MSCEIT provides a more valid and reliable
assessment of emotional intelligence skills because it
directly measures your EQ skills and abilities. MSCEIT
produces an overall EQ score as well as information
about levels of skill in four areas:
Perceiving, Using, Understanding, Managing, in addition
to sub- categories within each of the four primary
ability areas. These multiple measures, with
corresponding norms, allows for a detailed analysis of EQ
strengths and weaknesses. This detailed analysis is
critical in order to include improving your emotional
intelligence as part of your personal development
plan. Remember, EQ unlike IQ can be developed. You can
improve your ability to read people, connect with them to
form trusting relationships, engage them to collaborate in
planning and problem solving activities, as well as
influence their emotional levels.

8. For Leaders, IQ is More Important than IQ
Remember, your IQ and effort
is what helped you to succeed
in school and
develop a body of
professional
knowledge. But as
you enter the
management ranks,
leadership and your
ability to achieve
with and through
other people become
much more important.
Thus, for leaders, EQ is more
important than IQ.

9. Assessing Social Intelligence
We use a 360-degree survey to assess your Social
Intelligence. Social Intelligence is a broader
concept than emotional intelligence that
encompasses your body language
and manner in which you communicate
both verbally and non-verbally. Social
intelligence is generally about forming
productive relationships and “getting along”
with others. A basic model of social
intelligence is based on the dichotomy
between "toxic“ and "nourishing"
behaviors. Leaders who frequently
behave in toxic ways that make others feel
inadequate, incompetent, frustrated, and angry.
On the other hand, when leaders rely on
nourishing behaviors, those around them feel
valued, competent, respected, and appreciated.

10. Intelligent Leadership Styles
Questions?
Contact:
Dr. Phillip R. Ash
professorash@ymail.com