understanding the importance of emotional intelligence in sales professionals
TRANSCRIPT
Examination of the Relationships Between Emotional Intelligence and
Mortgage Sales Productivity
Dr. Diane Hamilton
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Hello, my name is Diane Hamilton. I live in Tempe, Arizona. I have been in sales for over 25 years. Being in sales positions for such a long length of time, lead to my interest regarding: what is it, that makes a person successful in sales? I have worked mostly in the pharmaceutical and banking/real estate industries. I have seen many bright people not make it. This brought about a curiosity regarding what leads to success and whether there would be any way to measure that. Initially I was thinking of writing about sales in general. However, it was pointed out to me that it would be too broad of a group of sales people to work with and so therefore I picked a smaller group to study. Due to my background and connections within mortgage sales, I felt that this group would be the most interesting choice considering the are paid mostly on a commission basis as compared to another industry such as pharmaceuticals where the representatives received a great deal of their income through salary.
Introduction
• Organization shareholders require successful sales representatives to be profitable.
• The need for a vehicle to help in the process of choosing those representatives that will be the most successful.
• Type of sales representatives chosen for this study.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
There are certain subprime mortgage organizations that offer only subprime loans. Like other sales organizations, these organizations rely on their sales force to sell products in order to produce necessary income. The amount of money that subprime organizations spend each year training and developing sales staff can be well invested. However, if staffs are unproductive, or if there is excessive turnover, such investment might represent an unneeded financial burden. “While the need for methods of predicting and evaluating the performance of salesmen is great, previous research has not been particularly successful in identifying variables associated with salesman performance” (Cravens, D. & Woodruff, R, 1973, p. 242). If there were a vehicle that could be used to determine the productivity potential and future sales performance success of an individual salesperson, mortgage organizations could take this into account in their hiring practices. The subprime industry was the industry chosen to measure emotional intelligence for this study because it contains mostly commission-based sales representatives who require a great deal of training and receive benefits at the expense of their organizations. The shareholders of these organizations could stand to benefit if a sales productivity predictor could be devised to test for future performance. The testing of sales representatives in this study was done online, which allowed for anonymity. This was necessary to ensure that the salesperson gave an accurate representation of his or her performance. There was no assurance that they would not exaggerate or misrepresent their results; however, their anonymity helped to discourage deceit. The sales representatives selected for this study had at least two years of sales experience in their current industry, were be between the ages of 18-65, and commission-based. All representatives were from the West coast branches, which primarily included the Phoenix and California areas.
Problem
• What poor performance means to the shareholders of organizations.
• Predicting sales success.• Emotional intelligence has been a topic of
discussion in the area of performance.• Determining if there is a relationship between
emotional intelligence and sales success.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
There can be a great cost to mortgage organizations if salespeople whom they hire are unproductive. “Research has shown that turnover can have a price tag of 33% of an annual salary for entry-level jobs and as much as 3 times total salary for higher-level positions” (Guettler, 2006, p.7).These mortgage organizations’ shareholders make their income based on their associates’ sales productivity. However, costs must be factored in, which include a base salary, benefits, and training programs to ensure account executives have sufficient underwriting knowledge to be productive. Predicting sales success has proven to be a difficult task. “In more than 100 empirical studies, researchers have attempted to explain observed differences in salesperson performance with little success” (Szymanski & Churchill, 1990, p. 163). There has been some research to suggest that high levels of emotional intelligence could be an indicator of sales success. Companies refer to these studies to see if there is a need for more training and development in this area. A 1997 survey of benchmark practices among major corporations, done by the American Society for Training and Development, found that four out of five companies are trying to promote emotional intelligence in their employees through training and development, when evaluating performance and in hiring (Goleman, 1998, p. 8). It is important to determine if there is an actual relationship between a salesperson’s emotional intelligence levels and their sales performance results. To determine if a relationship exists, it was necessary to conduct a correlational quantitative study, using an established quantitative EQ-i instrument to collect emotional intelligence ratings, as well as a separate instrument to collect demographics and sales results, versus forecast achieved data.
Background and Significanceof the Problem.
• Previous lack of success in predicting success.• State of the subprime market.• Quantitative vs. Qualitative.• Specific area of sales.• Sales hiring and training.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Determining sales success can be a critical advantage to organizations. Past results of studies trying to discover the secrets of success have not been fully successful. Sales results can be difficult to use as measures of sales success if forecasting techniques were ineffective. However, if all subjects utilize the same type of forecasting technique, there should be less variation in results. What can be more difficult to determine is what leads to success or failure in the area of sales performance in the first place. Obtaining sales in the subprime industry could have been difficult at this period in time due the volatility of the market. However, all sales people that remain in this industry are in the same difficult position. Therefore, this was not a study examining those in a period of crisis. Rather, it was a study looking for a relationship between EI and sales performance. Few studies have examined actual sales results; instead they have generally relied on more qualitative assessments when judging sales performance. Deeter-Schmeltz and Sojka (2003) have conducted research to explore the relationship between sales and emotional intelligence, but their study was an exploratory, qualitative one. Personal interviews were used. While that was a unique way to ascertain qualitative information, the sample size of eleven sales professionals did not yield substantially important results. The current study was unique in that it not only measured quantitative results, but also was specific to an area of sales that has not been addressed in past studies. The subprime industry has lost many of its highest performers in the last year. Banks that were on the top 25 list a year ago are no longer in business. However, there were a few remaining subprime lenders that were available to survey.
Research Question
To what extent, if any, is there a relationship between emotional intelligence and sales performance by mortgage sales professionals in the West coast area?
Presenter
Presentation Notes
In order to help organizations predict sales performance, it would help to find those areas that have the most impact on sales success. In the current study, emotional intelligence was explored in hope of answering the following research question: To what extent, if any, is there a relationship between emotional intelligence and sales performance by mortgage sales professionals in the West coast area?
Emotional Intelligence Defined
• Goleman’s Definition:
• Meyer and Salovey’s Definition
• Bar-On’s Definition
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Emotional intelligence has become a buzz word in the last 10-12 years, thanks mostly to Daniel Goleman who has popularized EI through several mainstream books. Goleman’s definition of EI is not the only definition of EI. In fact, there are several authors who have defined EI in slightly different ways. Goleman’s definition: “The abilities called here emotional intelligence, which include self-control, zeal, persistence, and the ability to motivate oneself”. Meyer & Salovey’s definition: “Emotional intelligence is the set of abilities that account for how people’s emotional perception and understanding vary in their accuracy. More formally, they define emotional intelligence as the ability to perceive and express emotion, assimilate emotion in thought, understand and reason with emotion, and regulate emotion in the self and others”. Bar-On’s definition: “Emotional intelligence is an array of noncognitive capabilities, competencies, and skills that influence one’s ability to succeed in coping with environmental demands and pressures”. I chose Bar-On’s definition and instrument for this study due to the validity his instrument has shown and the sheer body of research to support its use.
Significance of Research
• Potential hiring and training issues.• Change in the subprime industry.• Emotional intelligence measured in other
parts of business.• Emotional intelligence measurement issues.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Although there are numerous studies that focus on emotional intelligence and its impact on sales, none has focused on the subprime sales professional. A relationship between emotional intelligence and sales performance in this group, could be useful to companies developing hiring and training programs to predict top sales professionals. This information might also be extrapolated for use in other sales-related positions. Due to the declining numbers of remaining organizations in the subprime industry, emotional intelligence may be more important than ever. Much of the research done by Goleman (2005) and others has shown that emotional intelligence is important for success in the working world. “Goleman (1998) reviewed the competence models for 181 positions taken from 121 companies and found that two-thirds of the abilities essential for effective performance were emotional competencies” (Cherniss, C. & Adler, M., 2000, p. 5). Although many authors’ work emphasize the importance of emotional intelligence, some authors on the subject have presented doubts about how EI is measured. Studies have been conducted to test the fakability of the EI assessment tools. Although Grubb & McDaniel felt respondents could manipulate their scores, these results are outweighed by the numerous studies that support the validity of such instruments. Because emotional intelligence was found to play an important part in the success of mortgage professionals, this data could be added to the wealth of information that supports the need to find emotionally intelligent employees to fill critical jobs within a company. This information could provide financial savings as well as greater money making potential for companies.
Brief Review of Literature
• Goleman’s work.• Allen and Meyer’s work.• Barrick, Stewart, and Piotrowski’s work.• Deeter-Schmeltz and Sokja’s work.• Law, Wong, and Song’s work.• Meyer, Bobocel, and Allen’s work.• Salovey, Brackett, and Meyer’s work.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
There is a wealth of knowledge in the literature about emotional intelligence. Unfortunately, little has been investigated about the relationship between emotional intelligence and sales performance. Goleman (1998, 2000, 2001, 2002) is considered one of the top experts in the field of emotional intelligence. His work includes research on EI and its impact on leadership. Allen and Meyer (1996) are considered some of the foremost leaders in understanding emotional intelligence. These authors examined what will make a person more or less likely to stay with an organization. In Barrick, Stewart, and Piotrowski’s (2002) study, the authors looked at job performance and its relationship to personality traits in sales representatives. Deeter-Schmeltz and Sokja (2003) showed that there was more research needed to prove that EI determines sales success. The importance of their study was that they attempted to determine a relationship between EI and sales success and what those implications would be for the organization. Law, Wong, and Song (2004) looked at describing one’s EI as a distinct form of personality and also predictive of life satisfaction. The authors were hoping to obtain information that could be useful in management studies to improve job performance. In Meyer, Bobocel, and Allen (1991) there was a longitudinal study completed pre and post entry into an organization. They sought factors that were predictors of success within an organization. Salovey, Brackett, and Meyer’s (2007) research has widespread potential application. They acknowledged that EI is early in its stages of understanding: “It was introduced to a broader psychological audience just 13 years ago, and reliable and valid measures of the construct have only been used in scientific investigations for about 5 years” (Salovey, et al., p.i). These authors’ work was helpful in evaluating the survey instruments as well as comparing and contrasting popular theories and authors. The authors offered considerable research on the topic of emotional intelligence, its roots and development, how EI is measured, and what instruments are available, as well how the use of understanding and measuring EI can affect behavior and how the knowledge of EI can be used in the workplace.
Highlights and Limits of Methodology
• EQ-i instrument• Gathering sales data• Self-reporting
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Although the EQ-i instrument is one of the most studied and valid instruments available, there is always room for error in that it is a subjective evaluation of oneself through self-reporting means. The demographic sales survey instrument also required self-reporting. The EQ-i has adjustments that help to reduce or eliminate errors based on over exaggeration. The use of the internet to report sales results was used to gather sales data to avoid similar over-reporting of results. There were some limitations to the methodologies proposed. Although the EQ-i instrument has proven to be one of the best available, it did not come without limitations. Because it required self-reporting, issues could have arisen regarding truthfulness of responses. There were also concerns regarding self-reporting in the area of sales performance on the additional survey instrument. By allowing respondents to remain anonymous, it was hoped to help reduce their need to exaggerate claims.
Methodology
Is there a relationship between sales performance and:
• Total EQ• Interpersonal EQ• Intrapersonal EQ• Stress Management• Adaptability• General Mood
Presenter
Presentation Notes
To answer the questions and hypotheses for the current study, sales productivity was measured by comparing sales performance to forecast achievement. Data obtained from this study was used to determine relationships between sales performance and the different subcategories of EQ.
Description of Research Design
• Correlational quantitative design
Presenter
Presentation Notes
This study was of a correlational quantitative design. Regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses and measure relationships between the variables. Proving a causal relationship was not the goal of this study. Although there was a relationship shown between emotional intelligence and sales performance, the correlation does not mean that the this necessarily caused the result. In other words, there is no way to say that high levels of emotional intelligence cause high levels of sales performance. What was shown was the direction and magnitude of the relationship between EI and sales performance. However, this type of design yielded data to add to prior research regarding emotional intelligence and its relationship to sales to strengthen the argument in favor of the possibility that EI might be an essential ingredient to sales success.
Operational Definition of Variables
• Sales Results• Total EQ• Intrapersonal EQ• Interpersonal EQ• Stress Management• Adaptability• General Mood
Presenter
Presentation Notes
To understand the methodology of the proposed study, it is important to define the variables. It is therefore paramount to understand what is being measured as emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence, as measured by the EQ-i instrument, divides emotional intelligence into five distinct subscales: (a) intrapersonal EQ, (b) interpersonal EQ, (c) stress management EQ, (d) adaptability EQ, and (e) general mood EQ. Within these scales, these EQ measurements are given from a low reading in which the area indicates a need for enrichment to higher areas that indicate enhanced skills. Total EQ: Independent variable (X 1). “This score involves evaluating the respondent’s emotional intelligence at a deeper level based on an examination of the five EQ composite scale scores” (Bar-On, 2004, p. 43). Therefore, this score is obtained by combining the results of the five EQ areas. Mortgage sales productivity: Dependent variable (Y1). Sales productivity will be based on the year 2006’s sales results which are a percentage of sales obtained vs. forecasted amount. These data included a number indicating percentage of sales achievement versus forecasted amounts. Intrapersonal EQ: Independent variable (X 2). “The intrapersonal EQ scale assesses the inner self. The subscales of the Intrapersonal EQ scale include self-regard, emotional self-awareness, assertiveness, independence, and self-actualization” (Bar-On, 2004, p. 44). Interpersonal EQ: Independent variable (X 3). “The interpersonal EQ scale taps interpersonal skills and functioning. The subscales of this scale include empathy, social responsibility, and interpersonal relationships” (Bar-On, 2004, p. 44). Adaptability EQ: Independent variable (X 4). “The adaptability composite sale comprises the reality testing, flexibility, and problem solving subscales” (Bar-On, 2004, p. 44). Stress management EQ: Independent variable (X 5). The stress management component of EQ-i consists of the stress tolerance and impulse control subscales” (Bar-On, 2004, p. 44). General mood EQ: Independent variable (X 6). The subscales of the general mood EQ scale consist of the happiness and optimism factors” (Bar-On, 2004, p. 44).
Description of Materials and Instruments
• EQ-I survey instrument• Sales performance instrument• Sample size
Presenter
Presentation Notes
The EQ-i instrument was used to measure emotional intelligence. The EQ-i is a well-established instrument of choice for many researchers in the area of emotional intelligence. The majority of data came from this survey instrument. An additional sales performance instrument was used to gather minimal information. This instrument was not be used for primary research or analysis. The data obtained was information such as the number of years they have performed their job, one-year sales performance results for the year 2006 and other demographic information, such as race and gender. The data from this demographic instrument was obtained from the sales person in an anonymous online fashion. Although boasting and exaggeration of sales performance was possible, it is hoped that the anonymous manner in which the data was obtained helped to reduce the respondent’s need for exaggeration. The EQ-I instrument and the sales performance instrument had a matching code that was assigned to them so that the data from the two surveys could be connected. It was necessary to have two instruments due to the fact that the EQ-i does not allow for sales performance data input. The items on the EQ-i were developed by Bar-On in a Likert scale format, with answers being given in a five-point range. The sales survey was of a design asking about sales performance vs. forecast. The sales survey asked for years of experience, with the minimum amount usable in this study being two years in the present position. This allowed for the salesperson to be advanced in the learning curve. The quality of measures in the EQ-i has long been established. Validity measures to insure consistency have already been addressed by Bar-On and tested. Based on Cohen’s (1988) calculations, a power analysis using 80% power and an alpha of .05 was performed. Based on this analysis, a sample size of at least 150 was needed for optimal response. Also the use of anonymous website for testing was chosen to help improve the reliability of answers by helping avoid the desire for the salespeople to boast.
Selection of Participants
• West Coast Sales Force • Mortgage Banker’s Association List
Presenter
Presentation Notes
The population was taken from the last of the remaining top subprime mortgage companies based in Phoenix that cover the West coast area. In the second quarter of 2006, the Mortgage Banker’s Association (2007) listed the top 25 subprime lenders. From this list this researcher chose those companies that have a physical office in the Phoenix metropolitan area. As of this time, many of those original lenders have either shut down or gone bankrupt. The list has become limited to a handful of organizations. The last remaining organizations on that list included five in this area. Of those five, three were chosen randomly by dropping names into a box and taking out the first three.
Procedures
• Mangers contacted by phone.• Survey emailed to managers.• Managers distribute to sales force.• Sales force took both instruments, matching
codes.• MHS scored and sent to researcher.• Data input into SPSS.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
The survey was emailed to the regional manager by the researcher. The importance of understanding emotional intelligence in the workplace was imparted to these managers when contacted by the researcher. An explanation was given regarding the nature of the study of EI and its impact on the working world. The regional manager was asked to distribute the email containing the instructions for completion of the surveys to the sales force. When a regional manager of one of the organizations did not comply, then the other two organizations were contacted instead to increase responses. Participants were asked to list a code which will be decided by the participants on their questionnaires for identification purposes. A code was required in order to match questionnaires and will help ensure anonymity. The EQ-i questionnaire will measure emotional intelligence. The EQ-i is a 133-item self-report measure of emotional intelligence. The EQ-i questionnaire was administered online as will the sales/demographic survey. Sales data for this survey required 2006 results to avoid any unusual changes in results that may have come with the collapse of the industry since that time. Multi-Health Systems had a website where respondents could access the EQ-i survey. The sales survey was also taken online. The results of the EQ-i survey went directly to Multi-Health Systems (MHS) and the results of the demographic data went to the researcher. Use of the MHS website was necessary because MHS requires that they control the delivery of the EQ-i instrument. The EQ-i data obtained from MHS was forwarded to the researcher. The data obtained from the sales performance survey was then matched to the EQ-i data so that the respondent’s emotional intelligence scores could be compared to their 2006 sales results. EQ-I data obtained from MHS were compared to sales figures obtained.
Methodological Assumptions, Limitations, and Delimitations
Assumptions:• Number of sales people.Limitations and Delimitations:• Participation• Self-reporting• Other things impacting performance
Presenter
Presentation Notes
There are some issues that could have become problems. Assumptions included that at least 150 salespeople would participate. Having the district managers distribute the surveys could have lead to poor participation, since it might have been difficult to get the managers to give out email addresses of all of their salespeople. Therefore, it was necessary to contact the salespeople indirectly. This presented some problems if the managers did not emphasize any importance in filling out the surveys in a timely fashion or even in filling them out at all. This meant that it was necessary to have boundaries and third-parties to rely on for responses to the surveys. Due to the self-reporting nature of the instruments, respondents might have exaggerated results. In order to avoid such exaggeration, the respondents were informed that the company they work for would not be able to see their results. Also to help control for over-exaggeration, the EQ-i has built-in compensation devices. This helped to get accurate EI results, but could not control for exaggerated sales performance reporting. This author was looking for relationships between EI and sales performance. That is not to state that there could not be other factors that may have an impact on sales performance. Issues such as home life, marriage, period of time in a job, being on the verge of retirement, and others may have an impact. This study’s results may add to research to show a relationship between EI and sales performance, however, further research needs to be completed due to other factors that may also contribute.
Findings
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Data acquired online through EQ-i and sales survey instruments were acquired from 150 mortgage sales representatives. Survey results were only included if both surveys were submitted, the respondents had over two years in their present position and were between the ages of 21 and 65. Should any of these parameters be missing, the data was not utilized. Only the first 150 qualifying responses were accepted in order to minimize costs involved. Twelve were discarded due to having incomplete information. Methods of analysis for this study were conducted analyzing the data with SPSS software. The following procedures were run: descriptives, reliability, correlations and regression. The descriptive statistics were run to look for frequencies in the demographic variables. The mean and standard deviation were also analyzed for the main and subcategories of emotional intelligence and sales production. The original author, Bar-on (2004) of the EQ-i survey instrument, had already completed a great deal of research regarding the EQ-i, including a Cronbach’s alpha to determine reliability of their survey instrument. A total of 150 individuals participated in this study. 107 (71.3%) were male and 43 (28.7%) were female. As for race, 127 (84.7%) were Caucasian, 12 (8%) were African-American, 10 (6.7%) were Hispanic, and 1 (.7%) were Asian. The participants age were as followed 32 (21.3%) were between the ages of 21-31 years old, 44 (29.3%) were between the ages of 32-41, and 45 (30.0%) were between the ages of 42-51 years old, 29 (19.3) were between the ages of 52-61 and none were over 60 years of age. As for time in the industry, 72 (48.0%) were in the industry for 2-4 years, 47 (31.3%) reported being in the industry for 5-7 years, 22 (14.7%) were in the industry for 8-10 years, and 9 (6%) were in the industry for over 10 years. The participants were time at their current job was as follows: 35 (23.3%) were at their job for 2-4 years, 47 (31.3%) reported being at their job for 5-7 years, 32 (21.3%) were at their current job for 8-10 years, and 36 (24.0%) were in their job over 10 years.
Descriptive Statistics• Means and standard deviations for the completed study:• Table 1. • Descriptive Statistics______________________________________________•• Variable Mean Standard deviation•• Total EQ score 96.9667 12.32089• Intrapersonal 99.3333 12.56162• Interpersonal 94.1200 15.97016• Stress management 102.2400 74.30173• Adaptability 98.0333 10.46786• General mood 99.3600 11.18981• Sales vs. forecast 2006 89.7600 19.88986• ________________________________________________________________•
Presenter
Presentation Notes
All means are listed here. The only one that really stood out was stress management. This variance could be that the EQ-I is not a good measure of stress management for this group of people or perhaps it was due to the time of flux in the industry.
Most Significant CorrelationsTable 2. Correlations______________________________________
Intrapersonal General Total EQ Mood EQ_____
2006 Sales Pearson Correlation .583(**) .463(**) .847(**) Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000N 150 150 150
Presenter
Presentation Notes
All subscales had positive correlations to sales success except for stress management. The most significant correlations were seen between Intrapersonal EQ as well as General Mood and sales performance.
Correlations• Table 3. • Coefficients_________________________________________________________• Unstandardized Standardized• coefficient coefficient• Variable B Std. error beta t Sig.•• Intrapersonal .440 .213 .278 2.067 .040• Interpersonal .035 .106 .028 .325 .746• Stress management .008 .018 .030 .445 .657• Adaptability .113 .187 .060 .607 .545• General mood .600 .219 .338 2.743 .007• ___________________________________________________________________
Presenter
Presentation Notes
Hypothesis one proposed: Total EQ scores are positively correlated with mortgage sales productivity. To answer this hypothesis, a correlation was conducted. The hypothesis was supported. This result indicated that the magnitude of the correlation is small and the direction of the correlation is positive. As EQ increased, sales increased. Hypothesis two proposed: Intrapersonal EQ scores are positively correlated with mortgage sales productivity. This hypothesis was supported. This indicated that the magnitude of the correlation is small and the direction of the correlation is positive. As intrapersonal EQ scores increased, sales increased. Hypothesis three proposed: Interpersonal EQ scores are positively correlated with mortgage sales productivity. The hypothesis was supported. This indicated that the magnitude of the correlation is slight and the direction of the correlation is positive. As interpersonal EQ scores increased, sales increased. Hypothesis four proposed: Stress management EQ scores are positively correlated with mortgage sales productivity. This hypothesis was not supported. There is no relationship between stress management and forecasted sales. Hypothesis five proposed: Adaptability EQ scores are positively correlated with mortgage sales productivity. This hypothesis was supported. This indicated that the magnitude of the correlation is small and the direction of the correlation is positive. As adaptability EQ scores increased, sales increased. Hypothesis six proposed: General Mood EQ scores are positively correlated with mortgage sales productivity. This hypothesis was supported. This indicated that the magnitude of the correlation is small and the direction of the correlation is positive. As general mood EQ scores increased, sales increased.�The first regression analysis was conducted to predict forecasted sales from the EQ subscales. The overall regression analysis was significant. There were two significant predictors: Intrapersonal EQ and General Mood EQ. According to the standardized beta weights, General Mood is the strongest predictor of sales forecast.
Scatterplot Depicting Relationship Between Total EQ and Sales
Presenter
Presentation Notes
The second regression analysis was conducted to predict forecasted sales from the total EQ score. The regression analysis was significant, R² = 0.34, F(1, 148) = 75.59, p < .001. The scatterplot for the two variables (see Figure 1) indicates that the two variables are linearly related such as total EQ increases the sales forecast increases. The regression equation for predicting the sales forecast is: Predicted Sales = .94 Total EQ + -3.26.
Analysis of Findings• Table 4. • Correlations between stress EQ and sales ____________ • Total EQ Stress
• Variable score management •• Stress Mgt. .067 -•• 2006 Sales .581** -.010 • vs. forecast •• ** Correlation is significant at the .01 level (2-tailed).
Presenter
Presentation Notes
There were five areas of emotional intelligence that were part of the total EQ score. Only two of those five areas showed a significant predictor of sales success. Those two areas were intrapersonal EQ and General Mood EQ. Interpersonal EQ and Adapatability had a smaller relationship with success and Stress EQ was not a predictor of sales success at all. General mood was the biggest predictor with a standardized beta .34 and intrapersonal had a standardized beta of .28. Both of the predictors showed a positive relationship with forecasted sales; therefore as the predictor increased so did forecasted sales. The relationship between Stress EQ and sales results was the only hypothesis that was not supported. These findings suggest that areas such as intrapersonal and general mood scores would be the areas that management from organizations may want to place their focus when hiring and training sales people. These results indicate that one may benefit by increased sales should they improve in these areas. Strengthening one’s ability to understand and to cope well in areas of inner self may help increase productivity. Another, possibly more difficult to pinpoint area of EQ to be developed, was general mood. “The components of general mood EQ include happiness and optimism” (Bar-On, 2002, p. 5). Having a strong general mood EQ allows one to remain motivated and a good outlook on life. These results show that sales people may benefit financially by keeping this positive outlook. Organizational management can utilize training techniques to develop their sales employee’s EQ skills. Based on the results from this study, hiring managers may be able to utilize this knowledge to help them hire the most effective sales people. They could also use this information to improve these areas of EQ in current personnel which could help to improve their overall sales potential.
Summary
• Intent• Importance in area of sales.• Availability of information.• Support of other research.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
The intent of the study was to determine if relationships exist between emotional intelligence and sales performance in mortgage sales professionals. Several published studies have considered the relationship between sales and EI, but without any discussion of mortgage sales professionals specifically. Also, as many of these studies were qualitative in nature, a quantitative study would expand EI knowledge. Mortgage sales professionals were chosen as a specific, manageable area for research. Results could help increase the information available about emotional intelligence in sales performance and could help those hiring such sales professionals to more easily predict success. Goleman (2004) has done considerable research in the area of emotional intelligence. He expanded his research to analyze its effects in the business world, and specifically on leadership abilities. As important as this effort is, more data is needed in the areas that precede leadership, such as entry level sales positions. This area is important since the sales professional brings in the income that supports the organization. With poor performance in sales, the whole organization suffers. While it may be important to have an MBA or other credentials in high-level business positions, less may be required for entry-level sales positions. If organizations could predict performance and therefore test for those areas in the selection process, they could improve profits. Importantly, leaders of organizations do not require personnel managers to screen for EI competencies. “There is little or no systematic selection pressure when it comes to emotional intelligence” (Goleman, 2004, p. 251). Perhaps by making management more aware of how EI might impact profitability, this can change. If managers in organizations learn about the importance of EI, then could use that data to train current employees, possibly choose higher potential future employees, and increase the organization’s potential to be more profitable. Authors such as Anthony (2003) have put forth mainstream books on the topic of sales and EI. However, this author has done no published studies in the area of sales. There are also no references to any of the more important published works such as Churchill (1985). Anthony’s work entails ideas of how to use EI skills to help improve relationships in sales and increase profits. Most books on EI are devoted to general areas of emotional intelligence or leadership. Therefore, most of the research regarding sales and EI is still in journals and has yet to make it to mainstream bookstores. It is this author’s hope that more of the studies by Aggarwal (2005), Bagozzi (1980), Barrick (1993), a large meta-analysis by Churchill (1985), as well as many of the other sales-related articles mentioned previously in this study can someday be incorporated into a mainstream book from which those in organizations can benefit from the sales research in the area of EI. As it remains today, it would take a great deal of research into articles on the subject to get sufficient information on the topic of EI and sales to help those hiring sales professionals to understand the topic well.
Conclusions
• Focus• Improving one’s EQ• Relationships observed.• Future Development
Presenter
Presentation Notes
This study is not large enough to support conclusions as to its significance, but the information adds to the already strong database of studies performed to date. The fact that this study included mortgage sales professionals adds new depth to the findings. Goleman (2000) has shown that EI can be learned and improved. Asked whether EI can be boosted, Goleman responded “Absolutely” (Goleman, 2000, p. 2). Organizations could utilize this information by not only testing for EI in the hiring process but also later providing training exercises to help employees improve EI levels. Authors such as Hughes, Patterson, and Terrell (2005) offer training activities for managers that help employees develop specific areas of emotional intelligence. Should organizational testing of sales representatives show a low area in their EQ, specific activities could help address their needs. Stewart (1996) recommended that sales forces be developed. Organizations that have already hired their sales force can benefit from this knowledge by helping develop their current employees by adding activities that increase emotional intelligence. Incorporating ideas by Hughes, Patterson, and Terrell (2005) and others into everyday work activities could improve performance. Much research has been completed on emotional intelligence and how it impacts performance. Authors such as Bagozzi (1978), Bluen (1990), Stewart (1996), and Comer (1997) have contributed to this field of knowledge. Goleman (2002) has helped extend that knowledge in the workforce to focus primarily on leadership. It is this author's hope that reaching employees early in their career and utilizing EI training techniques could help improve not only their position within sales but also later actions in management and leadership positions.
Recommendations
• Future studies.• Larger populations.• Knowing how to utilize this information.• Improve sales success.
Presenter
Presentation Notes
More studies of this type could be provided to organizations whose employee would benefit from the knowledge. The sample size of this current study was small in order to be feasible for an individual to manage. However, organizations which understand the importance of such research could sponsor larger, more influential studies in the area. Also, leaders in this area of research such as Goleman (2002) and Salovey (2004) should expand their research to cover this important area. Goleman’s (2002) research on leadership was very important, but leaders must start somewhere in the hiring chain. Perhaps expanded research could find out where these leaders came from to see if improving emotional intelligence in early job positions could help later. This research was limited to a small section of sales which included mortgage sales professionals. Future research could benefit from increasing the numbers of study participants and including other areas of sales. Such an undertaking was beyond the scope of this project. However, a larger study in several areas of sales could help improve the understanding of EI in the area of sales as a whole. Goleman (2005) and others have made emotional intelligence something of a buzzword over the past decade. Many have studied it and yet it remains somewhat misunderstood due to the self-descriptive nature of the testing. With IQ testing, there is a right or wrong answer. This is not the case with EQ testing. EQ is more about self-perception. It may be impossible to devise a test that can give a truly unbiased result of EQ. However, should the responses be accurate on the EQ-i and other EI instruments, then it is up to organizations to use that data to their advantage. Sales people will most likely continue to be the life force of organizations. Anything that can be done to predict or improve their performance could only benefit shareholders in the organizations involved. Improving a sales person’s EQ may not be a panacea for sales success, but it may be one more weapon in an organization’s arsenal of tools to increase profitability by improving performance.
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