Reference no: EM133208116
Case Study #1:
Imagine you have a long-time employee who has always been reliable and productive. You have a good working relationship, you trust this individual, and he has never let you down. Suddenly, that employee begins behaving strangely. His performance has fallen off dramatically and when you approach him to raise your concerns, he responds angrily. The tension escalates in the office, until you find yourself in a shouting match with him in a staff meeting. The employee's behaviour is affecting everyone in the office, and you are overwhelmed. You're behind in your work, your boss is applying pressure to meet tight deadlines and now you can't count on a valuable member of your team. You suspect that there is something serious happening with your employee, and you know the company must meet certain legal obligations if the employee is in fact experiencing a mental illness such as depression or anxiety, but you're unsure what these obligations are. The stress is impacting your performance at work and your relationships at home. The technical expertise that got you promoted is of no use in this situation, and you have received no training to manage employees experiencing this kind of emotional distress. The tension between yourself and your employee continues to escalate, and you are constantly on guard for the next confrontation. You have begun to dread coming to work. What do you do? How does emotional intelligence apply in this case?
Case Study #2:
You've taken over a project that requires you to work in a small group of co-workers that you're placed in charge of. Jim is worried that you'll ignore all his ideas in favour of Adam's ideas. His fear ultimately becomes an issue to the productivity of the group. Other co-workers are noticing and writing off Jim's fears as nothing more than childishness. Meanwhile, Adam is beginning to show signs of emotional distress because of the attention Jim's behaviour is garnering. What can you do to manage this situation? What kinds of questions do you need to ask to better understand Jim's emotions? How does emotional intelligence apply in this case?
Case Study #3:
You manage a business where you have a group of employees intermingling on a regular basis. You have therefore realistically come to expect that eventually some of them will begin to develop personal, sometimes intimate, relationships. This happened recently with Craig and Ann. Craig and Ann met while working for you. They dated for the last five years before Craig suddenly called things off. This has recently led to a lot of uncomfortable, tense feelings, and even occasional fighting. How can you manage this effectively? How should you deal with flirtatious behaviour in the workplace to begin with? How does emotional intelligence apply?