Executive Coaching Case Studies
The Case of the Disappointing Disconnect
Charlie completed an Emotional Intelligence (EQ) self-assessment and, in this “360” survey, his EQ was also evaluated by his colleagues. Unfortunately, Charlie rated himself much higher than his peers rated him. Tom Pierce knows that this disconnect can trigger one of the most delicate and dangerous executive coaching situations.
Tom is certified to administer the respected Emotional Intelligence Appraisal™, to assess the results, and to coach clients how to enhance their EQ. When Tom first began using emotional intelligence in coaching sessions, he believed that, between the client’s self-assessment and Tom’s own evaluation, truth will emerge. Not quite, it turns out.
The first time Tom used the Multi-Rater Edition (360) of the Emotional Intelligence Appraisal, he got a rude but game-changing awakening: a coach will get closer to the truth by comparing a client’s own assessment scores with the average of assessment scores generated by colleagues—coupled with their narrative comments—about the client.
What’s the difference? A professionally administered and evaluated multi-rater survey significantly reduces what researchers call “self-bias.” We think we know ourselves. After all, we’ve lived with us longer than anyone else has! But, for example, if we believe we are terrific at building relationships…but people around us state that we are not so terrific at building relationships, who do you think is correct?
By the way, self-bias can work in the other direction, too. Several of Tom’s executive coaching clients have rated themselves lower than the scores generated by their peers. In some cases, the reason was too-low self esteem. In other cases, Tom’s client had been working on changing workplace behavior, and colleagues noticed improvement sooner than the client thought they would.
Back to Charlie. Tom knew that when he presented the findings shown in this table, his client’s reaction could range from denial to disappointment to despair:
| Charlie’s Self-rating | Colleagues’ Average Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Self-Awareness | 76 | 74 |
| Self-Management | 73 | 57 |
| Social Awareness | 79 | 75 |
| Relationship Management | 86 | 63 |
| Emotional Intelligence | 79 | 67 |
Tom and Charlie had scheduled a Friday morning one-hour, in-person coaching session. Tom began by allowing his client to review and absorb the results.
The assessment report also included a potentially demoralizing pie chart. The graphic showed (quite graphically…in bright red) that Charlie had overestimated the effectiveness of his behavior—compared with how his colleagues viewed Charlie’s EQ in the workplace—by a whopping 68%!
Tom waited to let the results sink in, and he noted that Charlie was quieter than usual. Charlie broke the awkward silence, “This is a real shock. I’ve worked with these people for several years, and I had no idea I’ve been perceived this way. They seem to agree that my awareness is relatively high, but these numbers show that they are much less impressed, and I guess much less impressed than I am, with how I manage emotions at work. I’m not sure what to do next.”
Tom reassured Charlie that this assessment just represents a snapshot in time, not a movie of the future. He reminded his client that, by practicing the right new behaviors, Charlie’s emotional intelligence can be raised. Tom recommended that he and Charlie begin working on Self-Management, the ability to convert your awareness of your emotions into appropriate personal behavior. Tom noted that by working on one aspect of EQ, the other skills improve, too. As Charlie gets better at Self-Management, for example, he’ll undoubtedly begin to build stronger relationships with others.
Charlie was uncharacteristically quiet for the rest of the one-on-one session and again in group meetings that Friday afternoon. Tom was concerned over the weekend, and very relieved to get an email from Charlie on the following Monday morning with the subject line: Thank you.
The weekend had been difficult for Charlie, too, but by Sunday afternoon he decided to face the truth, benefit from his colleagues’ candor, and begin right away working on Self-Management.
There are several morals to this case story, but here’s the most important lesson: when you feel you need coaching, or when your boss tells you that you need coaching, consider working with a professional like Tom Pierce. The odds are good that you will benefit from Tom’s experiences as a leader-manager, trainer, facilitator and executive coach.
