Developing Emotional Intelligence for the Workforce

Introduction

Emotional intelligence (EI), also called emotional quotient (EQ), is the capacity of a person to understand, control, and use personal emotions in desirable ways to curb stress, empathize with others, communicate well, and prevent conflicts. In the workplace, EQ is vital as it enables employees to work collaboratively, share information and feelings, and pursue the common organizational agenda with high motivation and commitment. The idea reveals the significance of business managers to ensure the workforce can effectively manage their emotions. In other words, EI is vital for the entity's competitiveness since employees are the key determinant of the quality of products/services offered to buyers. EI also determines the ability of the firm to address work-based environmental challenges. The Covid-19 pandemic saw shifts in working patterns, with remote working being the new norm. Since the effects should be permanent, companies need to realign their teams to match the current scenario. The lack of physical contact and direct supervision increased workers' demand for self-management, leading to higher risks of emotional instability. The retail industry, including grocery suppliers like Tesco, had to intensify their online operations where teleworking became usual to make emotional problems common in the workforce. The report uses Tesco as a case study to expose the significance of EI in the post-pandemic and recommend suitable strategies to make the workforce emotionally intelligent.