IT professionals who are very technically strong – even nerdy – but weak in “people skills” have become a stereotyped joke in many organizations. But with the increasingly critical role IT plays in organizational success, fewer people are laughing.

Last month I wrote about how I have used the burgeoning research on Emotional Intelligence in my work. A few months earlier writer Diann Daniel interviewed me Daniel Goleman, and other leading EI researchers and writers. She wrote an excellent article entitled “Soft Skills for CIOs and Aspiring CIOs: Four Ways to Boost Your Emotional Intelligence” To read my comments and link to Diann’s article see “Boosting Your Emotional Intelligence.”

In August, InterGovWorld.com ran Diann’s article. They also included a Related Content section with links to a few past articles. If you’re interested in helping IT professionals – or your entire IT department – become more customer focused, I recommend you click on the “Three Strategies for Customer-Focused IT” link. This short article makes some key points on the need and approaches for helping IT become more customer-focused.

In the past year, we have seen a sharp increase in organizations asking for our “Leading a Customer-Centered Organization: How to Build a Service/Quality System for Exceptional Results” workshops for IT departments and professionals. We also see many of our consulting Clients focusing IT more sharply on external through to internal customer needs.

I’d love to get your experiences with personally developing your own EI as well as any approaches you’ve found useful to help others (IT or otherwise) build these vital skills. E-mail me at Jim.Clemmer@Clemmer.net.