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Learning to Lead Change: Building System Capacity

Leadership for Change Library

Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence
Daniel Goleman, Richard E. Boyatzis, Annie McKee
Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2002
306 pages

One of two books on our list featuring emotional intelligence (see Caruso & Salovey, 2004). Building on Goleman's seminal work on emotional intelligence (EI), Primal Leadership identifies four domains of EI: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management, and 19 skills and competencies that cut across the four interrelated domains.

Goleman, et al., show how these dimensions of EI play themselves out over six leadership styles: Visionary, Coaching, Affiliative, Democratic, Pacesetting, and Commanding. Based on a very large sample of executives, Goleman relates leadership style to organizational climate and, in turn, to sustained financial success. Two styles — pacesetting (let's innovate, try to keep up with me), and commanding (do as I say) had negative effects on climate and profits. The other four all had positive effects. The authors make the point that each of the positive styles are appropriate under certain conditions and that, in any case, EI leaders work on fostering all four qualities.

Goleman and his colleagues demonstrate that EI is crucial in today's complex world; more important than technical expertise (although the latter is needed). They present evidence that EI can be learned and developed. It is difficult, but as they say, “leaders are made, not born.”

The authors also note that you can't change culture one leader at a time. Strong leadership must foster in the whole organization focusing on changing the daily norms and practices. Effective leadership development focus on emotional and intellectual development: action learning and coaching, where people use what they are learning to diagnose and solve real problems in their organization.

Why We Like This Book
Everyone can relate to emotional intelligence, and Goleman and his team do a superb job of laying the foundation clearly displaying what EI is. They show how EI plays itself out in specific leadership styles linked to impact on culture and profits. They demonstrate how EI can be improved. They make a compelling case with clear explanation, strong evidence, and sets of strategies to improve individual and group emotional intelligence.