The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire Edition 27: Oct/Nov 2016 | Page 26

Mars and Venus. Do women and men have different levels of emotional intelligence?

Business Psychologist Jan de Jonge gives us his insight.
In the world of work, a person’ s specific ability is a key aspect when deciding about someone’ s suitability for a job role or a promotion. Apart from that, motivation and specific dimensions of a person’ s personality are key important factors that predict job success.
And then, of course, the notion of‘ cultural fit’ comes into play- this is linked to diversity.
Gender diversity( or: equality between men and women) is a hotly debated topic. Fair pay is said to be even more important for people when they are considering changing jobs than job satisfaction.
Women, on average, are likely to earn some £ 300,000 less than men over their working lives.
This gender pay gap still exists- despite increased attention to it.
Are men and women really that different? Do men and women differ in the extent to which they recognise, use and manage emotions( emotions, feelings, in themselves and in others) in order to build relationships, make decisions and deal with stress? In short, do women and men really have different levels of emotional intelligence?
Psychological research suggests that contrary to what‘ culture’ may( want to) habitually tell us and we may like to believe, men and women do not differ noticeably in overall levels of Emotional
Intelligence. Any differences in for example‘ Self-Awareness’,‘ Emotional Expression’,‘ Interpersonal Relationships’,‘ Empathy’,‘ Problem Solving’,‘ Self-regard’ and‘ Assertiveness’ are found to be small. The largest difference is on the aspect of‘ Empathy’: women score( only slightly) higher on this.
Men and women really do come from the same planet- more needs to be done to reduce the gender gap and embrace diversity.
For more info: www. peoplebusinesspsychology. com
02034 783 253

Launch of Thorne Brown Consulting

A new consultancy has been launched in Wiltshire aimed at helping companies find unidentified internal funding. It aims to achieve this by helping companies save money on their research and development costs and helping commercial property owners to identify capital allowances.
Director Ian Brown has worked for the last six years as an independent consultant helping businesses save money through tax utilising legitimate allowances the Government grants.
Thorne Brown Consulting Ltd will be working predominantly with Inspire and its members, and is the only Inspire partner that specialises in identifying capital allowances and research and development tax credits.
In terms of Research and Development savings, Ian can help identify activities that are taking place within a business that qualify for tax credits. It is thought that only around 1 in 5 companies that
are eligible claim and yet the average credit for those that do is almost £ 50,000. Ian said:“ Many businesses are working on bespoke software, food production, business research, manufacturing and many other technological advances without guaranteed outcomes. It’ s these firms I want to talk to and work with, to help them save on their bottom line, releasing cash flow to spend on further development and growth.
Businesses and individuals can save with capital allowances. The Government wants to incentivise businesses to invest in plant and machinery and although a lot of what
goes into a property can’ t be classed as this, certain items can. Ian’ s team specialises in teasing out what qualifies as plant and machinery, things that qualify include central heating, air conditioning, data cabling and bathrooms. Making a successful capital allowances claim draws together surveying, accountancy and legal interpretation skills which mean most claims are constructed by specialist consultants.
Typically, 27 % of a properties purchase price could be offset against corporation or income tax giving substantial reductions in the amount payable over a number of years. Recent legislation changes make
it crucial to take advice if considering a purchase. Thorne Brown Consulting charges a percentage fee, depending on the result achieved for the client with the aim that the client saves more than the fee in the first year.
Thorne Brown Consulting has strong relationships with many professional practices but as a partner looks to help Inspire members direct to ensure they are receiving the best possible advice.
@ fuellinggrowth
For more info: www. thornebrownconsulting. co. uk
26 THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2016