Bryce Jackson
Trying to walk in somebody else’s shoes can be difficult. Maybe you don’t wear the same shoe size. Maybe you aren’t big on walking around wearing someone else’s shoes. It is especially difficult when the shoes aren’t real and are instead a metaphor for their complex thoughts and feelings.
Organizational empathy is a concept that has grown in popularity and coverage over the years. The rise of remote workplaces at the start of the decade has played a big part in people wanting to be heard by companies that they both work for and patronize. Let’s learn a bit about this popular E word and why it is so important to have.
What is Organizational Empathy?
It may seem self-explanatory, but it’s not as black and white as an organization just having empathy. This article would be pretty boring if it was just “organizations need to have empathy.”
It involves an organization putting itself in the position of any stakeholder and understanding how they feel about said organization. Those stakeholders can be employees, investors, consumers, and even upper management. It can look different from company to company. However, the steps to achieving a high level of organizational empathy remain the same.
Why Does Organizational Empathy Matter?
Glad you asked. For internal stakeholders like employees, the biggest thing is that it makes the likelihood they will enjoy working for your organization higher. Research has shown that employees are placing empathy higher and higher on their list of things that they want to see from their company leadership. It improves overall workplace morale when employees feel heard and understood, so long as action is taken in turn. Better morale means happier employees, which means better work. The benefits of happy people are numerous.
For external stakeholders like consumers, the purpose of organizational empathy is a little more complex. Executing it is even more so. While empathy towards consumers does include understanding how they are feeling in regards to you and acting accordingly, it can also mean understanding what they need. That can range anywhere from recognizing what kind of customer service to give a customer to understanding what you as an organization need to offer to them. Having empathy towards external stakeholders can directly affect the success of your organization. This is especially so if your company depends on them to continue operating.
What Does It Look Like?
Organizational empathy can look different based on a variety of factors depending on the organization and the group that is being interacted with. Two of the groups that need to be shown empathy the most are employees and consumers.
Employees
For starters. showing empathy can be hard if open communication isn’t happening. A good way to exhibit empathy as an organization is by giving employees a platform to be heard. Whether it be done digitally or verbally, establishing some way that employees can give feedback, share thoughts and feelings, or whatever else they may want to say can allow for the opportunity. It gives you the groundwork necessary to tell them “We care how you’re feeling about this, and we want to take action on it.” After all, you can’t take action on something that you aren’t aware of.
A seemingly simple practice for showing empathy is by implementing empathy training. From the perspective of some non-management employees, the liaison of the company isn’t the CEO – it is their direct supervisor. Ensuring that all employees from the bottom up have this training helps understand the feelings of coworkers. Everyone from an hourly salesperson to board members should be trained on what empathy is and how to go about showing it.
Sometimes the solution to a problem is to recognize it before it becomes a serious issue. Make empathy a talking point during interviews. However you implement it is up to you, but gauging, say, a potential manager’s capacity for empathy can stop a hit to your staff’s morale before it even starts.
Consumers
Organizational empathy with consumers can present itself in different ways. Knowing how they feel about your company is the key to being empathetic in a lot of scenarios. What are people saying about you? Are there things they like? Things you should change? What do people wish you offered? A sentiment from exhibiting empathy with employees rears its head with consumers, too. Open communication can make empathetic actions much easier.
The best way to show that communication lines are open and that consumers are being heard is through channels that most organizations already have. Social media creates a channel for immediate two-way communication with stakeholders to address problems, hear out suggestions, accept positive feedback, and more. Issues can arise when this feedback you’re getting is responded to but not acted upon, though.
One of the primary ways you can exhibit empathy through action is by accounting for consumer feedback in company-wide changes. Whether it be changing a feature of a product, optimizing your website because of complaints, or something else, you can’t just listen. Action is required for it to be effective and genuine empathy.
Achieving true organizational empathy can’t be done overnight. There are a lot of factors that add to the difficulty of truly putting yourself in the shoes of stakeholders. Having a lot of things occupying your time, reacting emotionally to feedback, and committing to changes without proper research and planning beforehand can prove to be the proverbial wrench in the machine.
Let us help you focus on organizational empathy!
As mentioned above, it can be hard to show stakeholders genuine empathy when you’re swamped, feeling pressured, and on a bunch of deadlines. While Content Cucumber can’t give you any certified empathy training, we can help take some weight off your shoulders to make it easier to do so!
Book a demo today with the masters of content to have one less thing to worry about.
