. Dr Dare Joseph Daniel
Expert calls for upgrade of leaders’ emotional knowledge for effective management processes
By Emmanuel Ologun
Abuja.
A human capital development specialist has stressed the need for leaders to be highly equipped and grounded in modern personnel and material management techniques to ensure proper utilisation of available data and other resources for proper results.
Dr. Daniel Dare Joseph, a lecturer at the Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, University of Abuja, in a paper he presented at the 2024 special training session of the Institute of Human Capital Management and Skills Development of Nigeria with the theme; “Emotional Motivation, Intelligence and Leadership Effectiveness in the Corporate World,” posited that leadership which is the heart of every organization, must be seen as a process of leading followers that gives right direction to the organization and induces employees to work smarter to improve themselves for the sake of the organization’s wellbeing.
According to the lecturer, “to get better outcomes from the employees and to achieve the organizational goals, leaders should be able to understand the pulse of the employees and his or her own as well. Generally, people in the organizations expect that others should understand their own feelings and respect them. Therefore, the leader should be very careful in dealing with employees’ emotions.”
He defined emotional intelligence as “the ability to recognize, understand, and manage one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions of others. It is a crucial quality for effective leadership, as leaders need to be able to manage their own emotions and empathize with the emotions of their team members.
Dr. Joseph pointed out that the concept of emotional intelligence was first introduced by Psychologists Peter Salovey and John Mayer in 1990, and has since become widely recognized as an essential quality for effective leadership.
He added that emotional intelligence consists of four components namely self-awareness: the ability to recognize and understand one’s own emotions, strengths, weaknesses, and values, self-regulation: the ability to manage one’s own emotions, thoughts, and behaviours in a way that is constructive and aligned with one’s goals.
Others are the social awareness: the ability to recognize and understand the emotions and needs of others, and to empathize with their perspectives and relationship management: the ability to build strong relationships, communicate effectively, and manage conflicts.
While advocating the inclusîon of emotional intelligence ín leadership roles, Joseph pointed out that it plays a pivotal role in building strong relationships, fostering teamwork, and promoting a positive work culture.
“Leaders with high are adept at inspiring and motivating their teams, resolving conflicts, and adapting to change. Emotional intelligence helps leaders in enhancing effective communication, building strong relationships, conflict management, effective decision making, motivating and inspiring team members.
“Today, in the modern corporate world, effective leadership is not merely about managing a team; it’s about inspiring, guiding, and adapting to the changing dynamics of the workplace.
“Numerous studies have shown a strong correlation between Emotional Intelligence and effective leadership. Leaders with high EI tend to be more adaptable, better communicators, and skilled at resolving conflicts within their teams. They can create supportive work environments that foster employee engagement and productivity.
“Research also suggests that Emotional Intelligence positively influences decision-making, as emotionally intelligent leaders consider not only rational factors but also the impact of their choices on team morale and relationships”, he concluded.
In his opening remarks, Professor Phillip Adeyinka Oyadiran, who is a Professor of Human Resource Management and Policy Analysis and Dean, Faculty of Management Sciences, University of Abuja pàid glowing tribute to the “dogged fellows and professionals across the globe, who with dignity, sense of patriotism and matchless skills, talent and knowledge, occupy the intellectual and professional world in quality and in quantity.”
He said as “a unique institute that explores and maintains boundaries between intellectualism, professionalism and skills acquisitions with, zero tolerance for premodialism, all professions in the global arena are duly represented,” adding that “through the institute’s inbuilt networking and assessment in this era of Artificial Intelligence, the board is glad that members in the civil service and corporate organisations- public and private, are making us proud.”
Prof. Philip urged the government to expedite action towards curbing the spate of insecurity that has led to the loss of life in great numbers, especially the human capitals/talents who were vanguards or fulcrums of positive change and bedrocks of development.
The dean bemoaned the high inflation in the country noting specifically that “economic crises coming with double digits inflation and abnormal incessant rising in the prices of goods and services have hugely affected various activities and businesses in the nation’s corporate organisations, Institute of Human Capital and Skill Development of Nigeria inclusive. “We do hope that this ugly trend will subside and gains come imminently as the present government embarks on critical reforms to give our politics and economy face lifts.”
The forum observed minute silence to honour “our highly cherished fellow and Legal Adviser of our noble institute, Barrister Chris Agidi, the senior Legislative Aid to Senator Ned Nwoko, who was suddenly declared missing and whose body was later discovered in the den of kidnappers.
While praying that God should give his gentle soul eternal rest, Prof. Philip stated that the sudden and untimely departure of Agidi left a huge vacuum in the institute.
“He was always present during our induction programmes to conduct OATH TAKING with me, in his Law Regalia. This rude shock also came while he was gathering and harvesting necessary documents to be presented before the National Assembly in order to make our Noble Institute Chattered. A courtesy visit by the Board will be made to commiserate with the family and a token will be presented,” he stated.