Empathy is an important trait among employees, leadership and executive teams that is often overlooked. An empathetic individual is willing to help employees on a deeper level, shows interest in their wants and needs, and demonstrates compassion. Exemplifying empathy in the workplace means relating to employee emotions, thoughts and experiences—something that can greatly improve the success of a department and the company overall. In order to create an empathetic work environment, all employees and leadership should be open to discussing their personal work stressors and feelings in order to relate to each other on a personal level.
If employees’ emotions are not being heard by management, teams may become unproductive, unfulfilled and may ultimately affect the company’s bottom line. By promoting an empathetic work culture and leadership style, you may be able to help employees reach peak performance while increasing their overall well-being.
