Where did Emotometrics start?
Dr. Gawie Minnaar (D.Phil. – University of Pretoria) was a clinical psychologist who started his career in test development at the Human Sciences Research Council. After 10 years in test development he accepted a position as Personnel Manager for 5 years. In 1985 he and his wife, Susan Minnaar (MA), a registered counseling psychologist, started their own business, namely Minnaar & Associates. Minnaar & Associates specialised in the assessment and development of leadership skills.
In 1998 he recognised the need for a formal method of measuring this unique quality, to manage emotions in all aspects and conditions, that successful individuals often possess. He developed the comprehensive Emotometrics assessment battery of tests in association with statisticians from the University of Pretoria and the University of South Africa. Dr. Minnaar and his wife developed the follow-up Emotional Intelligence training courses, which was presented at various companies throughout South Africa. This business thrived until his passing in October 2014 and the legacy that he left behind is still being used by several companies in South Africa at present. Emotometrics was the first comprehensive Emotional Intelligence test battery developed by a South African.
Susan Minnaar is still in control of the intellectual property and she is doing emotional intelligence training on an ad hoc basis for selected clients. She is currently overseeing Emotometrics’ operations. Their daughter, Michelle Minnaar (BSc Computer Science), designed the software and launched the British branch of the business in 2016.
How does it compare?
The programme has gone through rigorous research, item selection, validity and reliability studies to ensure that it is scientifically sound. Every effort has been made to ensure that Emotometrics delivers an honest and authentic assessment of the four characteristics that an emotionally intelligent person possesses:
- Self-awareness: The ability to understand and be in tune with your own emotions.
- Self-management: The ability to manage those emotions, especially the negative emotions such as frustration, anger and stress.
- Social-awareness and perceptiveness: Sensing and communicating empathy for the emotions of others.
- Social skills: Sensing the emotions of others and dealing with the problem behaviour of others constructively. The emotionally intelligent person displays active listening skills, a fair degree of assertiveness, the ability to manage conflicts as well as the ability to build trust.
Going beyond initial testing
Since the 1980’s, Emotometrics has been used with great success in conjunction with soft-skill training modules. The reason for this is simply because your IQ remains relatively unchanged throughout your lifetime, while you can develop and improve your emotional intelligence.
This makes Emotometrics ideal for measuring the impact of training geared towards improving a range of skills essential to business and personal success. It’s also why we’ve included follow-up testing functionality. You can re-test your employees at any time to ensure that money spent on training is having the desired effect on productivity levels, customer satisfaction and staff welfare.
How Emotometrics can add value to your business
Beyond the obvious benefits of appointing the right applicant for the job, Emotometrics provides several benefits to a variety of businesses::
- Reduced staff turnover due to enhanced job satisfaction
- Higher productivity and improved morale
- Healthy and constructive communication and collaboration between employees
- More effective use of training
- A healthy bottom line
Emotometrics refines and streamlines the process of emotional intelligence testing and it is compatible to all selection and recruitment processes. It benefits all parties involved and is clearly a superior method for identifying the true potential and areas for further development of applicants.