Boulder, CO — The Booth Company introduces the new Executive Leadership Survey (ELS), an updated version of its popular multi-rater feedback survey for developing executive leadership talent. This is the most significant update to the survey in over a decade, combining current research, industry trends and customer feedback to refresh its relevancy while increasing the simplicity of the feedback process.
The everyday responsibilities of executives have evolved significantly since the ELS was created in 1989. Recent technological developments have led to greater amounts of communication, requiring executives to make decisions more frequently and within shorter timeframes. Taking this into account, The Booth Company has included three new dimensions in the new ELS: “Awareness of Others,” “Self-Awareness” and “Self Management.” These additions allow the executive to receive confidential feedback regarding his or her abilities to professionally interact with others, master personal impulses, and make rational choices in situations that often involve pressure and disagreement.
Evaluating such competencies has become an increasingly common industry practice in recent years, typically under the label of “emotional intelligence.” Known as “E.Q.” (Emotional Intelligence Quotient) – primarily to differentiate it from the more traditional intelligence assessment, I.Q. (Intelligence Quotient) – emotional intelligence provides an interesting model to assess interpersonal leadership skills and rationality in pressured decision-making situations. However, this approach has also received its share of criticism, mostly stemming from emotional intelligence tests that evaluate personality traits and characteristics instead of skills and abilities that may be developed.
The new ELS dimensions and their time-tested counterparts (such as “Business & Financial Acumen,” “Industry & Market Insight,” and “Organizational Savvy”) combine to provide the executive with feedback from peers that is used to develop relevant skills. In this way the new E.Q. dimensions reliably augment the assessment of traditional executive competencies, providing an assessment that remains explicitly focused on a well-rounded set of the most relevant skills needed by today’s executives. According to Dr. Daniel Booth, founder of The Booth Company, “combining E.Q. with traditional executive skills in one coaching tool is not only more efficient, it helps executives accept that being an effective thought leader and organizational manager is only half of the effectiveness equation. He or she might be the smartest person on the team, yet still fail or fall short for lack of empathy, self-awareness or skills in managing emotions. The new ELS helps the executive achieve a more realistic and comprehensive view of the executive role.”