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How to Add EQ to Your PM Toolkit?


The score card for project delivery practices has never been spectacular. Over the past 25 years the annual CHAOS report has found the success rate of IT projects stubbornly unchanged. In 2022, the report found only 31% of IT projects are successful, while 52% are challenged and 17% fail.


Standish Group note: “.... Then we look at the root cause of project failure which is poor decision latency. ... Then we look at the root cause (of) poor decision latency which is low emotional maturity.”


How do we add emotional maturity to the Project Management toolkit?


Here are some best practices for integrating emotional intelligence coaching with project management performance coaching:

  • Start with a needs assessment:

    • The first step is to conduct a needs assessment to identify the specific areas where the project managers need to improvement. This will help to ensure that the coaching is tailored to the individual's needs.

    • At Applied EQ Services we use a simple survey tool to anonymously and simply capture, a standard baseline. Using the recognised SERVQUAL framework the tool helps discover gaps and establish priorities and quantify as-is performance metrics for PMs and PMO managers

      • This provides both PMs and PM managers in the PMO a reliable and safe way to reflect and share challenges or call-out performance concerns.

      • By integrating a review of both project management procedures and emotional maturity practises, the full breadth of PM performance that is needed for successful project delivery are properly assessed.

  • Focus on the soft skills:

    • Emotional intelligence coaching focuses on the soft skills, such as communication, empathy, and decision-making. These skills are essential for project leadership to be successful.

    • At Applied EQ Services we provide coaching that blends years of experience successfully applying recognised best-practice project methodologies with a coaching style that is professional, open, passionate, altruistic and reliable.

      • This provides PMs and their managers in the PMO with practical & relatable communications, a shared understanding of situation-specific experiences, plus objective joint assessments, action plans & quantification.

      • By integrating informed and experienced coaching in expert project management practice with reliable & open mentoring in applied emotional intelligence there is a comprehensive focus on soft skills for project leadership

  • Use a variety of methods:

    • There are many different methods that can be used for emotional intelligence coaching. The best method will depend on the individual's learning style and preferences.

    • At Applied EQ Services we normally integrate with the existing cadence and process of project performance review and supplement any PMO group training plans and intranet knowledge portal. Eliminating any extra demands on PM time or avoiding any distractions from the project delivery focus allows EQ coaching to be adapted for each the PMs and adopted effectively across the Project operation.

      • Proven templates for project performance review and SteerCo reporting that integrate legacy time-cost-quality tracking with EQ metrics and trend reviews offer flexible and adaptable ways to incorporate EQ coaching.

      • Integrating coaching and monitoring provides a flexible way to combine EQ development with PM performance without adding additional workload or distraction.

  • Be patient:

    • It takes time to develop emotional intelligence. The coaching should be a long-term process, not a quick fix.

    • At Applied EQ Services we supplement regular existing project management reviews and performance management without adding an overhead.

      • That integration allows EQ development to become a seamless part of BAU, without introducing new budget demands or time pressures.

      • By supplementing established operation, EQ development becomes part of the ongoing project delivery process giving time for EQ development to operate as part of the professional culture while new projects continue to kick-off and finish and progress through their life-cycle.

  • Provide ongoing support:

    • The coaching should not end once the sessions are over. The project manager should have access to ongoing support to help them apply the skills they have learned.

    • At Applied EQ Services we build a knowledge base with the PMs and PMO, helping accumulate lessons-learnt, best practice references and collateral plus ongoing re-bench-marking and support.

      • A secure, personalised team site is always established for to accumulate information, lessons and skills development tips & tricks and its contents can be migrated to the PMO or company intranet.

      • Best practice shows that a truly blameless project review culture results in more reliability. Introducing occasional reviews into an PMO operation is as much a cultural change as it is a technical one. It's important to emerge from any future project escalation or surprise with more than just hope that project delivery will eventually remedy itself. Ongoing support continues to be available from Applied EQ Services to provide properly documented, properly actioned, and widely shared reviews as a effective tool for positive PM improvement and EQ development that prevents repeat escalations and incidents.


By following these best practices, you can effectively integrate emotional intelligence coaching with project management performance coaching. This can help project managers to improve their skills and abilities, which can lead to improved project outcomes.


Are you a PM or PMO leader who’s not sure how best to develop your own and your team’s Emotional Maturity? Are you an enterprise leader, directing a Digital Transformation or a complex ICT Transition or a strategic CiP program and you're unsure how to assure project performance? A coaching program that is integrated with legacy project performance reviews can be a simple, reliable way to achieve that success.


If applied EQ is too often missing from projects and there’s interest in improving the quality and success of ICT project activity please contact Applied EQ Services to discuss bespoke online coaching, mentoring and consultancy services. We optimise skill sets and deliver a sense of assurance for Project Managers to confidently conduct the "orchestra" for their own projects.

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