empathy - Publications - Faculty & Research

26 Aug 2020
Blog Post

Two sides, same coin: How I left the Bay Area as an operator and returned as an investor

evolved and progressed. This time the coin has flipped. I return equipped with more knowledge and passion for the startup industry, and also with more empathy for both founders and investors. The ability to understand both sides has... View Details

29 Nov 2018
Blog Post

The HBS Community - Student Initiatives

bolstered our ability to lead with empathy and courage. Next time you have the chance, spend time truly getting to know someone; you’ll be amazed by what you will learn. Megan Williams, Grace Feenstra, and Marissa Meir are second year... View Details

01 Oct 2009
What Do You Think?

Can the “Masks of Command” Coexist with Authentic Leadership?

the people you serve, empathy for the people you work with, and the courage to make difficult decisions, (4) establishing enduring relationships: people insist on access to, as well as openness and depth of relationships with, their... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

28 May 2019
News

Turning Point: Into the Wild

reading fear? Exclusion? Anger? Being able to switch into that mode is very helpful in so many situations, both professional and personal. In that sense, tapping into the wild isn’t just where I get my energy; it’s also a great source of View Details

06 Aug 2020
Research & Ideas

Who Will Give You the Best Professional Guidance?

expertise, but may have insights and empathy from other clients with whom they work. Therapists are wholly objective, can be very expensive, but also extremely worth it if you are under a lot of stress at work or home. If you can afford... View Details

Keywords: by Julia B. Austin

30 Mar 2020
Research & Ideas

Readers Ask: I Need Tips for Working at Home

coronavirus is changing everything we know about how to get work done. The New Rules for Remote Work: Pandemic Edition Many parents are working and caring for kids at home. How can managers set expectations? Choudhury: It's a great question. I feel managers should show... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz

07 Sep 2010
Research & Ideas

Mindful Leadership: When East Meets West

Leaders with low emotional intelligence (EQ) often lack self-awareness and self-compassion, which can lead to a lack of self-regulation. This also makes it very difficult for them to feel compassion and empathy for others. Thus, they... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

01 Dec 2017
News

The Future of VR is Animated Bunnies

all four Madagascar films. Baobab creates interactive, animated VR worlds that feel less like games—in many early VR experiences, users engage with characters only to win something—and more like movies. For Fan, animated VR is the entertainment trifecta: “ the View Details

Keywords: Janelle Nanos

01 Sep 2014
News

Afghanistan’s Hope and Light

employer (1,100 workers) and biggest taxpayer ($500 million and counting). “If we treated the Afghans with respect, it would create a brand loyalty and empathy they’d never had a chance to experience before,” Khoja says of the company’s... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna

19 Jan 2023
News

Forged in Fire

new Emerging Leaders edition of True North, which includes Foster's story as an example of the importance of crucible experiences in defining leaders. And in this episode of Skydeck Foster and George share the lessons of their own crucibles, discuss the value of View Details

15 May 2020
Research & Ideas

Find Your Pragmatic Path through Radical Uncertainty

not the same as agreeing with them or even being sympathetic. Empathy involves considering a serious question: “How can I act without increasing the uncertainty in the lives of others?” Wearing a mask won’t guarantee your safety but it... View Details

Keywords: by Howard Stevenson, Eugene B. Kogan, and Shirley Spence

10 Dec 2021
Blog Post

African American Student Union Spotlight on the Midwest

growing up in the Midwest shaped your values and leadership style? Growing up in the Midwest (specifically East Chicago) gave me empathy for people from less privileged socioeconomic backgrounds, especially from a health perspective. East... View Details

25 May 2021
Blog Post

The Surprising Power of Nostalgia at Work

social conflicts. We also observed that when people are experiencing higher levels of nostalgia, they’re more interested in working on tasks with others, and nostalgia has been shown to increase empathy for others and prosocial behavior... View Details

Keywords: All Industries

16 Nov 2020
Research & Ideas

Transitions of Power Are Difficult. What Joe Biden and Other Incoming Leaders Need to Know.

urging corporate and political leaders to pay more attention to feelings and culture, I think those will now be very much on the radar screen. It’s not “touchy-feely” (a long-standing put-down) for a leader to show empathy at an... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

11 Feb 2021
Blog Post

Good Leadership Is an Act of Kindness

as if little has changed. Their employees are responding to their expectations by working themselves even harder. Enough." "Thank you." Say it with sincerity and say it often. Along with empathy and emotional intelligence, kindness is one... View Details

Keywords: All Industries

07 Jan 2015
Research & Ideas

The Quest for Better Layoffs

companies, on communities, and, most of all, on employees. "The initial drive was to build empathy around the decisions that are so core on a human level," Sucher says. "They wanted people to learn about that." Green... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Manufacturing

16 Jul 2024
Op-Ed

Corporate Boards Are Failing in Their No. 1 Duty

with Azure, acquiring LinkedIn in social media and Activision/Blizzard in gaming, and investing in OpenAI to gain control of ChatGPT. Equally important, he transformed the Microsoft culture from an arrogant bureaucracy into an empowered organization focused on growth... View Details

Keywords: by Bill George

14 May 2020
Research & Ideas

What Leaders Can Do to Fight the COVID Fog

“Having empathy in day-to-day interaction with employees, customers, vendors, investors, etc. is always an important leadership skill, but this empathy is dramatically heightened during a crisis that is... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg and Robin Abrahams

31 Jan 2023
News

Female Founders' Dilemmas; UK Tech Startups

panelists said the ability to anticipate is critical, as is recognizing the need to adopt different management styles as you are scaling your company. Careful attention to hiring—and authentic empathy in letting early team members go—are... View Details

Keywords: Margie Kelley

Web

Social Entrepreneurship and Systems Change (SESC) - Course Catalog

character; capacity for systems thinking; empathy in product/service design; and their ability to navigate diverse sources of capital to build either for-profit, nonprofit, or hybrid organizations. SESC take a deep dive into how social... View Details

Publications