--- title: The Pillars of a Successful Support Organization, Part 3 description: Emotional intelligence versus IQ when hiring and staffing your help desk. Check out the third blog in our 3-part series of a successful organization. image: https://www.ghdsi.com/hubfs/helpdesk%20agents.png --- ## A quick read with a big impact. Search Ok Posted by [ Stephen Clark ](https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/author/stephen-clark) Sharing is caring - [** ](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/the-pillars-of-a-successful-support-organization-part-3) - [** ](https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/the-pillars-of-a-successful-support-organization-part-3) - [** ](https://twitter.com/share?url=https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/the-pillars-of-a-successful-support-organization-part-3) # The Pillars of a Successful Support Organization, Part 3 ![helpdesk agents.png](https://www.ghdsi.com/hubfs/2020/blank.png) This is the third blog in our 3-part series on the pillars of a success organization. If you missed the other 2 parts of the series, you can view them [here](https://blog.ghdsi.com/blog/the-pillars-of-a-successful-support-organization-part-1). People are the foundation of any support organization, as a matter of fact, fair or unfair, the help desk is the face of the entire IT department.  In a recent survey by MetricNet, of global large-cap companies, 84% of respondents said that the help desk was a very important factor in determining their overall satisfaction with the entire IT department. ![helpdesk agents.png](https://www.ghdsi.com/hs-fs/hubfs/helpdesk%20agents.png?width=452&name=helpdesk%20agents.png "helpdesk agents.png") When staffing a help desk many would think to hire the most technical people, however, the most technical people are not always the most social; and the help desk is about personal service.  Our company, Global Help Desk Services Inc. (GHDSi), has learned over our 16 years of delivering high-quality help desk services, that hiring employees with emotional maturity, or EQ, versus their technical ability, or IQ, lead to more successful agents by factor of 4:1. In his book Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ, Daniel Goleman defines EQ as the ability to understand, use, and manage emotions in oneself and others.  And unlike IQ, EQ can be taught and learned.  Those with High EQs tend to have five qualities or competencies in common: 1. **[Self-regulation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-control)**: The ability to control or redirect disruptive impulses and moods, and the propensity to suspend judgement and to think before acting.  Hallmarks included trustworthiness and integrity; comfort and ambiguity; and openness to change. 2. **[Internal motiviation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motivation)**: A passion to work for internal reasons that go beyond money and status - which are [external rewards](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motivation#Intrinsic_and_extrinsic_motivation), - such as an innver vision of what is important in  life, a joy in doing something, curiosity in learning, a [flow that comes with being immersed in an activity.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_(psychology))  A propensity to pursue goals with energy and persistence.  Hallmarks include a strong drive to achieve, [optimism](http://www.sonoma.edu/users/s/swijtink/teaching/philosophy_101/paper1/optimism.htm) even in the face of failure, and organizational commitment. 3. [**Empathy**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empathy): The ability to understand the emotional makeup of other people.  A skill in treating people according to their emotional reactions.  Hallmarks include expertise in building and retaining talent, cross-cultural sensitivity, and service to clients and customers.  (in an educational context, empathy is often thought to include, or lead to, sympathy, which implies concern, or care or a wish to soften negative emotions or experiences in others.)  See also [Mirror Neurons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirror_neuron).  It is important to note that empathy does not necessarily imply compassion.  Empathy can be 'used' for compassionate or cruel behavior.  Serial killers who marry and kill many partners in a row tend to have great emphatic skills! 4. [**Social skills**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_skills): Proficiency in managing relationships and building networks, and an ability to find common ground and build rapport.  Hallmarks of social skills include effectiveness in leading change, persuasiveness, and expertise building and leading teams. The more of the qualities a person possesses, and the more they use them, the higher EQ they typically have. At GHDSi we hire people who can understand problems as well as solve them.  Giving our customers a great experience when they call our help desk.  Our company culture is one of integrity, honesty, a spirit of excellence, and customer service.  Our mission is to provide a distinctly pleasant, efficient, and consistent help desk experience by applying the best in people, process, and technology. If you would like to see a short 15-minute video click on the following link: [http://info.ghdsi.com/webinar-making-help-desk-look-easy](https://info.ghdsi.com/webinar-making-help-desk-look-easy) [** ](https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/what-to-look-for-in-a-help-desk) [** ](https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/trust-and-reliability-two-factors-necessary-for-help-desk-providers) ### Recent Posts - [** How to Outsource Healthcare IT Help Desk Support — and Stay HIPAA-Compliant ](https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/how-to-outsource-healthcare-it-help-desk-support-and-stay-hipaa-compliant) - [** 5 IT Help Desk Metrics That Truly Measure Success ](https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/help-desk-kpis-accurately-measure-success) - [** Elevate Your IT Help Desk Skills: Harnessing Personality Styles for Better Results ](https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/elevate-your-it-help-desk-skills) - [** How to Have a Headache-Free Outsourced IT Help Desk Implementation ](https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/how-to-have-a-headache-free-outsourced-it-help-desk-implementation) - [** Outsourced IT Help Desk Services: An Explainer on Contracts ](https://www.ghdsi.com/blog/outsourced-it-help-desk-services-an-explainer-on-contracts) #### Customer Testimonials "They proactively review all of our tickets to try to find more areas where they’re able to resolve issues as the first line. They’re coming back to us with that information so we can increase the number of calls that they’re able to take care of." [ View the Latest Testimonials ](https://www.ghdsi.com/help-desk-company-testimonials) #### [ Help Desk Outsourcing ](https://www.ghdsi.com/help-desk-outsourcing) Global Help Desk Services, Inc. provides help desk outsourcing with guaranteed service levels to enterprise-sized companies. ![top_work_2025-6_final](https://www.ghdsi.com/hubfs/top_work_2025-6_final.png) #### [ Resources ](https://www.ghdsi.com/help-desk-resources) - [ » Blog ](https://blog.ghdsi.com/) - [ » Success Stories ](https://www.ghdsi.com/help-desk-case-studies) - [ » FAQs ](https://www.ghdsi.com/help-desk-outsourcing-faqs) - [ » Help Desk Learning Center ](https://www.ghdsi.com/resources-learning-center) #### Pricing Tools - [ Help Desk Cost Calculator ](https://www.ghdsi.com/help-desk-cost-calculator) - [ IT Cost of Support Calculator ](https://www.ghdsi.com/it-support-cost-calculator) #### [ Are We a Fit ](https://www.ghdsi.com/are-we-a-fit) #### [ Our Approach ](https://www.ghdsi.com/our-approach) - [ » Onboarding Process ](https://www.ghdsi.com/help-desk-onboarding-process) - [ » Service Delivery & Quality Control ](https://www.ghdsi.com/service-delivery-quality-control) [ Schedule a Help Desk Consultation ](https://www.ghdsi.com/contact-us-outsourced-help-desk-services) #### CONTACT US ** Global Help Desk Services, Inc. 521 Cromwell Avenue, Rocky Hill, CT 06067 ** Toll Free: **1.800.770.1075** Local: **1.860.296.7230** [ Contact Us ](https://www.ghdsi.com/contact-us-outsourced-help-desk-services) - [** ](https://www.facebook.com/GlobalHelpDeskServices/) - [** ](https://www.linkedin.com/company/global-help-desk-services-inc-) - [** ](https://twitter.com/GHDSiHelpDesk) [ » View Privacy Policy ](https://www.ghdsi.com/privacy-policy) - [ » About Us ](https://www.ghdsi.com/about-us) - [ » Careers ](https://www.ghdsi.com/help-desk-support-careers) Global Help Desk Services, Inc. - © Copyright 2021 | All rights reserved. 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