LEADERS of Sandals Resorts International are now fired up about the importance of emotional intelligence after participating in a seminar with internationally renowned psychologist and best-selling author, Dr Daniel Goleman.

Held at Sandals Ochi Beach Resort and Spa the seminar, spearheaded by Sandals Corporate University, was attended by executives, directors, corporate, and general managers.

The session formed part of a series of leadership seminars scheduled to take place during the coming months.

Dr Goleman, author of the paradigm-shifting book Emotional Intelligence, has transformed the way people think about intelligence, relationships, leadership, and high performance in business and beyond.

In his presentation he argued that, “emotional intelligence in the hospitality business is so crucial because interactions that guests recall are those that made them feel heard and cared for”.

He added: “A meta-analysis conducted shows that emotional intelligence makes performance in any organisation increase and engagement is elevated because employees feel great about their jobs and the people they work with. This shows that your effectiveness — irrespective of your IQ — is closely linked to how well you handle yourself and relationships.”

According to Dr Goleman, the most successful leaders are strong in the areas of self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills. He shared tips for improvement in these areas.

Following his keynote address Sandals leaders engaged in a riveting moderated session where they had the opportunity to ask thought-provoking questions in an effort to prepare themselves to better impact their operations.

Reflecting on the day’s session, Dr Luz Longsworth, senior corporate director for Sandals Corporate University, said, “We are very pleased to have been able to facilitate this session on emotional intelligence for our corporate leaders. Dr Goleman has created paradigm-shifting work in his lifetime that has truly made a mark on the world.

“It was a successful session and our leaders are inspired to improve themselves and their teams so that we can continue to make our guests and each other feel loved and cared for with each encounter.”