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“ Great leaders are not heads down. Great leaders see around corners, shaping their future, not just reacting to it” R oselinde Torres, 2014, TED Talk, "What Makes A Great Leader" In an unpredictable present and facing an uncertain future, what might be a good portfolio of qualities for a business leader hoping to grow a sustainable yet profitable business? Using relevant literature, discuss. Introduction
It is important to note that business leaders hoping to grow a sustainable , yet profitable business need a specialised portfolio of skills and qualities . Sustainability and Corporate
Responsibility are important issues for organisations in the 21st century. Organisational leaders must have forward thinking plans and visions for sustaining the planet within which they operate as well as social responsibility towards its people through an emotionally laden process.
Emotional Intelligence (EI) has shown an impressive track record in efficiency and superior performance of leaders in organisations that have adapted environmental, social and economic sustainability strategies. Goleman (1998) identified a EI competence framework that outlines a portfolio of skills that forward thinking leaders have. The key finding is that transformation takes place more constructively when emotional intelligence is used . Further , Emotional Intelligence have been identified as a key skill in building teams and channeling team efforts towards sustainability . This paper will argue that Emotional Intelligence (EI) is the key skill that leaders need for the sustainability of our natural and socio­economic environments. Background
Sustainability and Corporate Responsibility are important issues for organisations in the 21st century. The degradation of our environment through population growth, overconsumption and waste of resources , global warming and the business pursuit of pure profits present great risk for sustainability and makes the future of our planet look increasingly bleak.Hargreaves and
Fink argue that sustainability is not just about something that lasts. Sustainability looks at ways of developing things or making things without compromising the development or survival of other things in the environment . (Hargreaves & Fink 2000) .

The leaders of our organisations have to be the drivers for positive change, they need to be able to lead in such a way that inspires people to think and behave in responsible ways for sustainability. Organisational leaders must have forward thinking plans and visions for sustaining the planet within which they operate as well as social responsibility towards its people through an emotionally laden process. Blachfellner stresses that company’s leaders need to radically redefine their economic strategies if they want to foster sustainable living conditions on earth.
He adds that to act in a sustainably economic fashion , the company leaders and stakeholders have to not only consider value creation for the company , but also for the environment and society . (Blachfellner 2012) . It is important to differentiate sustainability thinking form the traditional protectionism thinking , in that sustainability thinking is proactive and strategic and is based on the future. (Víctor et al. 2009) According to several authors , sustainable and responsible behavior is not only based on rational decisions but ‘‘it is flanked and motivated by emotions.’’ (Kals et al. 1999, p179 )

Emotional and Social Intelligence have shown an impressive track record in efficiency and superior performance of leaders in organisations that have adapted environmental, social and economic sustainability strategies.
After 20 years of research , EI was first presented in a framework in 1990 by Salovey and
Mayer. They define Emotional Intelligence as “.. .the ability to monitor one’s own and other’s feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and actions.” (Salovey & Mayer 1990 p186 ) They argue that Emotional Intelligence is
a subset of Social Intelligence and theirs is a widely used definition. Cherniss (2010) explains that emotions play a role in everyday life and people have different perceptions , understanding , use and management of emotions. . Boyatzis says that “ EI competency causes effective or superior performance because it is an ability to recognise, understand and use emotional information about oneself and others.” (Boyatzis & Ratti 2009, p
821 ) George goes on to say that leadership is an “emotion laden process”. (George 2000, p 53)
Intuitively EI is linked to the leadership process. EI has been studied across different organisational settings such as organisational leadership
(Mumford et al. 2000) , emotional leadership (Zaccaro 2002) and transformational Leadership
(Bass & Riggio 2010) . The key finding is that transformation takes place more constructively when emotional intelligence is used for influence, inspiration, motivation and building relationships with followers. Bass ( 2002, p78 ) notes that “ It is clear that social and emotional intelligences contribute to the frequency with which individual leaders are seen as transformational.” Several studies done by Abraham and Roberts (Abraham 2005) indicate that there is a strong correlation between leadership and EI. Research done by Walter ( 2011) found that EI helps us better understand leadership behaviour and effectiveness. Furnham and Petrides ( 2006) explains that EI firstly , carries on a timeless interest in interpersonal skills, secondly EI is optimistic and positive, and thirdly it enables people with lower IQ’s to succeed as leaders . Murphy et al ( 2006) agree with Furnham and say that people with low or average IQ’s succeed in leading with EI sets of skills . Dess and Picken (2000) say that smarter managers are not necessarily the answer when leading organisations towards sustainability strategy. They argue that organisational leaders with a vision towards sustainability must create and encourage. Both of these are ruled by Emotional Intelligence skills . The United Nations Global Compact initiative (Cetindamar 2007) is calling on leaders where they are guiding and helping businesses to act responsibly and take action for a more sustainable future. The call is to align strategies with universal principles on social development, inequality, poverty, human rights, fair labour environments, ecological environment and anti­corruption. They want businesses to take action that advance societal goals . This requires emotive and social skills such as self awareness, social awareness, self management and
Relationship management as cited by Boyatzis and Goleman (Goleman et al. 2002) . Social and
Ecological Sustainability suggests a demand for emotions and evoking feelings and expressing organisational goals with EI skills will drive performance. (Newman et al. 2010) . Newman et al
(2010) say that tasks that require better emotional skills show stronger correlations with how high EI scores and performance .
Goleman (1998) identified a EI competence framework that outlines a portfolio of skills that forward thinking leaders need. The first is to be self­aware; once you become self aware you have the ability to see that you are part of the problem. This means that people in organisations that have been denying that anything is wrong with the way that they are conducting business and are not following sustainable and responsible strategies, realise that they are part of the problem and have a paradigm shift. Recognising that you are part of the problem is the first phase of moving towards change. The second is self management,in which phase you can manage and control your thoughts and behaviour in a more socially responsible way . Emotional self control , trust, adaptability and initiative are examples of self management skills. This could mean seeing the opportunity to use alternative energy in the organisation which would have to be initiated and managed. The third is social awareness; in this phase decisions are made with empathy based on social and organisational responsibility. Emotions influence business decisions and at this stage the Leaders realise that achievements are not only internal but extend to outside the organisation. Lastly , in the Relationship management phase E­Intelligent leaders use their skills to develop and empathise with others to better understand and manage all the stakeholders in the team , through conflict management, catalysing change, building bonds, teamwork and collaboration via emotions. Further , Emotional and Social Intelligence have been identified as key skills in building teams and channeling team efforts towards sustainability . Northouse (2004) defined Leadership as having a basis of four common themes which include having a process, having influence , occurring in groups and attaining a goal. He thus defines leadership as “ a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal” (Northouse 2004).


To achieve this we need leaders that have a specific set of skills that enforce a culture of caring and co­operation at all levels. EI is the key requirement for achieving co­operation and successful team work . (Ordun & Beyhan Acar 2015) Prati et al (Prati et al. 2003) further add that EI is critically important to effective leadership and team performance ,making it one of the most notable social effectiveness constructs as teamwork is essential to achieve complex sustainability objectives. Team work needs leaders with EI skills including good communication skills, empathy, and innovation. E­Intelligent leaders are capable of innovative thought and creation. (Scott & Bruce 1994) Conclusion
Goleman ( 2002) said that EI matters more than IQ for leaders and this builds a strong case for driving organisations towards ecological and social as well as economic sustainability. Although cognition is important , it is not enough when relating to sustainable business thinking. Based on all the research done on EI , sustainable business leadership can advance vision and action through the emotive skills that are necessary to create participation and collaboration in teams.
Sustainability leadership is a social process that stems from relationships within groups and group dynamics always require emotional understanding and management. This paper has highlighted that EI has shown an impressive track record of efficiency and superior performance in leaders that have adapted sustainability strategies. Further, EI has been identified as a key skill in building teams and channeling team efforts towards sustainability. The evidence is clear : the key skills that leaders need to carry organisations towards social, environmental and economic sustainability are grounded in Emotional Intelligence.

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