Empatisk ledelse. Nok et fint ord vi putter foran ordet ledelse og lager en ny ledelsesteori av? Eller en grunnleggende og avgjørende lederferdighet?
Jeg fikk nylig den glede av å bidra til en nettartikkel hos Headspring Executive Development rundt empatisk ledelse. Jeg skriver her mer utfyllende om mine tanker rundt temaet, hvorfor det er viktig og hvordan vi kan trene på det. Denne gang på engelsk 🙂
We all have a need to feel seen and acknowledged. Empathetic leaders are both able to empathize with and willing to care about employees’ situations. This leadership approach is based on the belief that leaders can get the best out of their employees by showing consideration and support.
While a leader always has to take the organization’s needs into account, an empathetic leader will also emphasize employees’ own needs. When we feel understood, we are more motivated and engaged in our work. Studies confirm that leaders who show empathy have employees with higher job satisfaction and higher job performance. Those who thrive at work do well at work.
In working life in the Nordic countries, there is an expectation of autonomy and co-determination. Leadership is often about setting direction, however, letting employees influence and decide how they want to get there. Through such an approach, one can build increased ownership among employees, and thus release more of what resides in the work force. This requires that leaders can show empathy—through listening and showing consideration.
In the face of uncertainty, the need for empathetic leaders is even greater. In situations we have not been in before or that feel overwhelming, we need support from those around us. Being in uncertain situations and constantly having to deal with changes in the environment is demanding. Then we need more than ever leaders who allow fallibility and make themselves available.
Thus, leaders constitute a crucial function for employees to be able to face the challenges that uncertain times demand. A major survey conducted by the global alliance CEMS during the pandemic confirms this. Leadership qualities such as strategic vision and results orientation were still important in uncertain times, but were less valued during the pandemic than before. Qualities such as resilience and empathy, on the other hand, were more valued.
Empathic leadership in the face of uncertain times is not only important for employees to feel cared for. However, uncertainty also requires the ability to innovate and solve problems. Leaders who show curiosity and have a prosocial motivation contribute to increased psychological safety. Through such safety, employees can feel to a greater extent that it is accepted to express their opinions, questions, and concerns. Through a number of studies, psychological safety has been shown to be crucial for innovation and learning in organizations.
Empathic leadership is trainable. It may seem that such a way of leading comes more naturally to some, but as elsewhere in life, what we do more of gradually becomes natural to us. Showing empathy is something we do, not something we are.
How can one practice empathic leadership? I recommend three strategies:
1. Practice active listening. It is one thing to show interest by asking questions, another thing to show genuine curiosity by being mentally present after the question has been asked.
2. Seek feedback. By showing a desire for your own development, you contribute to a learning culture and you gain increased insight into how you influence the people around you.
3. Show recognition. Express why your employees are important and why you are grateful for their contribution, even when you don’t necessarily agree. If your employees feel that you are out to «take them», they will doubtless be completely honest with you. Empathic leadership is wishing others well.
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