Curated by the Knowledge Team of ICS Career GPS
Education
Emotional intelligence skills key to navigating COVID-19
Excerpts from article by Fred Muyia Nafukho, published in University World News
Given the current COVID era of anxiety, distress stress and uncertainty, and based on empirical evidence that emotional intelligence (EI) predicts a range of positive outcomes in the workplace and in higher education, institutions may need to rely on their EI skills to navigate the challenges emanating from COVID-19.
Emotional intelligence skills are essential to create a positive learning environment, especially in COVID-19 conditions. For the purpose of this article, I adapt the 1990 definition of Mayer and Salovey of EI as a person’s ability to understand their own emotions and the emotions of others and to act appropriately based on this understanding.
History of emotional intelligence
EI dates back to 1920 with the work of the American psychologist Edward L Thorndike who argued that true intelligence was composed of academic components as well as emotional and social components.
David Wechsler, a Romanian American psychologist who played a role in the development of Intelligence Quotient (IQ) tests, agreed. He said, “I have tried to show that in addition to intellective there are also non-intellective factors that determine intelligent behaviour.”
Multiple intelligences
Due to advances in research and new knowledge generation, intelligence researchers recognise that intelligence is broader than the cognitive and technical skills measured by the traditional IQ tests.
American EI expert Daniel Goleman argued that although IQ tests have been accurate in predicting academic success, they are far from perfect. The part of the variance in success unaccounted for by IQ could be explained by characteristics that constitute emotional intelligence measured by emotional quotient (EQ).
On the important notion of multiple intelligences, Harvard developmental psychologist Howard Gardner in 1983 proposed eight types of intelligences: visual/spatial, verbal/linguistic, logical/mathematical, kinaesthetic, musical or rhythmic, interpersonal, intrapersonal and naturalistic.
Practical application of EI skills
Based on research on EI, there are five emotional intelligence skills that can greatly assist educators and leaders in higher education in their work: intrapersonal, interpersonal, adaptability, stress management and general mood skills.
1. Intrapersonal skills
Intrapersonal skills which, according to Reuven Bar-On, an Israeli psychologist and pioneer in EI, are measured by five subscales:
- Self-awareness – refers to educators having a solid understanding of their emotions and full understanding of their impact on others.
- Self-regard – referring to the need for educators to first respect themselves by accepting their personal strengths and limitations.
- Self-actualisation – requires educators to find deep meaning in their work.
- Emotional expression – requires educators to convey their emotions and feelings in a way that is non-judgmental and not hurtful to their students.
- Assertiveness – requires expressing their perspectives in a respectful, firm and direct manner when making decisions and independence.
2. Interpersonal skills
According to Bar-On, interpersonal skills are measured by three sub-scales:
1. Interpersonal relationships – refers to the need for educators and leaders in higher education to build trust and meaningful relationships with students and colleagues.
2. Empathy – refers to the educators’ ability to recognise, understand, and appreciate the way their students feel.
3. Social responsibility – emphasises the need for educators to act in a moral and responsible way, and aim to promote the greater good.
3. Adaptability skills
There are three important subscales that researchers have used to measure adaptability skills:
1. Problem-solving – refers to the urgent need by those in higher education to tackle problems head-on and find solutions when emotions are involved.
2. Reality testing – referring to the EI ability of being objective and seeing things as they really are.
3. Flexibility – refers to the ability of those teaching or working with students to adapt to the shifting priorities due to COVID-19.
4. Stress management skills
There are two subscales that researchers have effectively used to measure stress management. These are:
- Stress tolerance – the ability of those working with the students in higher education to withstand adverse COVID-19 events without ‘falling apart’ by actively and positively coping with stress.
- Impulse control – Those in higher education and working with students should think and reflect before acting when confronted with COVID-19-related situations as they pertain to learning.
5. General mood skills
General mood skills refer to two subscales:
- Optimism – having a positive attitude and outlook on life, despite the challenges)
- Happiness – refers to the notion that despite the difficulties some level of patience, humour and fun is still necessary
We can all acquire EI skills
While it has been argued in this article that EI is critical when it comes to help students in higher education cope with the challenges they are facing due to the COVID pandemic, the good news is that we all can learn and over time acquire EI skills.
In the 1998 article “The emotionally competent leader”, American EI expert Daniel Goleman wrote that that, unlike IQ which is inherited, EQ can be learned over time with great success.
Career
The future is served: Hospitality careers in a post-COVID scenario
Excerpts from article published by the India Today Web Desk
Today’s Hospitality curriculum focuses on educating the next generation of analytical, financial and digital leaders. In order to stay germane in the post-COVID-19 landscape, top Hospitality Management programmes must offer classes about the soft, hard and digital skills needed to differentiate their graduates from other job candidates in the global job market.
Choose a career in hospitality
According to the recent World Economic Forum report, Digital Transformation: Powering the Great Reset, over the past several months the pandemic has accelerated key technology and digitalisation trends, including exciting customer experience innovations ranging from Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality to robotisation and touchless solutions.
Hospitality must now not only make travel safer and more hygienic but also ensure a better overall digital customer experience as two-thirds of the world is connected via smart mobile devices.
For these reasons, next-generation hoteliers must be equipped with the knowledge of how to best utilise and adapt technology in innovative ways when serving their new and returning clients and customers.
According to Accenture’s Technology Vision 2020 | Driving Value and Values During COVID-19, “76% of decision-makers throughout the world say that companies must create completely new experiences wherever people and technology meet.”
Knowing how to both create new roadmaps for the consumer journey and navigate these new intersections and pathways, especially where technology and hospitality meet, will become essential for a successful career.
Because technology will continue to be an integral part of the Hospitality industry, Generation-Z hoteliers must consider where they want to begin their careers and explore new angles and opportunities in the sector that extends beyond the once typical food and beverage/restaurant and hotel models.
Digitalisation in the field
Hospitality continues to reinvent and digitise the customer experience via new apps, AI, SEOs, UI/ UX, VR/ AR and social networking. Let’s look at the artificial intelligence (AI).
According to the McKinsey report Advanced analytics in hospitality, “As rapid progress continues in AI-enabling technologies like machine learning, natural language processing, and video recognition, we expect that artificial intelligence capabilities will soon reach the point where many travel companies are able to generate significant value by applying artificial intelligence at scale to their day-to-day operations.”
Some hospitality companies have already begun to deploy artificial intelligence in pilot projects. This experimentation and rapid prototyping are likely to continue as new techniques and technologies mature.
While it is still unclear how AI-related technologies and advanced analytics will change the hospitality sector, a number of distinct opportunities are starting to emerge.
Future beckons
Future hoteliers can tap into AI in order to enable a more radical personalisation through predictive analytics and customised on-property, real-time product recommendations essential both to the sector’s growth and guest satisfaction.
Customer services can also be enhanced through natural-language processing tools and chat-bots while programmable robotics can deliver services with accuracy and consistency.
As an example, this summer the Norwegian airport company Avinor partnered with Amadeus to roll out an end-to-end touchless travel programme to tackle the impact of COVID-19 and help restore traveller confidence ahead of Norway’s summer season.
Because those entering the Hospitality field today will influence tomorrow’s cutting-edge technology and fortifies new collaborations, an education that provides a strong foundation in soft, hard and digital skills has become essential.
Leading Hospitality Management programmes will not only help the industry adapt, reimagine, redesign and implement innovations and solutions in the post-COVID-19 landscape, but will also help the sector advance into the future by finding compelling opportunities and ideas that accelerate the sector’s recovery and growth.
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the article mentioned above are those of the author(s). They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of ICS Career GPS or its staff.)
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