A model for empathetic leadership in a (more than usual) VUCA world
What a year – in case you’ve forgotten, things were pretty alarming in 2020 even before the global pandemic hit us.
In case you’ve forgotten,
- Australia declared a national emergency as bushfires ravished the country, killing up to a billion animals in the process.
- The UK withdrew from the European Union (or did it?)
- Trump was acquitted by the Senate on both counts of impeachment
- Oil prices fell to negative values
- Israel had another election
It’s only June.
What does this chaotic environment mean for your team members and colleagues? Empathy is always a good skill to have. Now even more so than ever.
There are some great resources over at Vuca World and we’ve taken their simple strategies as a starting point for the empathetic leadership model below.
The key to empathy as a leader (defined as ‘the ability to understand another person’s feelings, experience’ in the Oxford Dictionary), is to often, and repeatedly ask yourself the question ‘What might my team be feeling right now’ or, perhaps better still, to ask your team the question ‘How are you feeling right now’ (or variations thereof). And actually listening to their response.
Let’s take a deeper look at our model for empathetic leadership in a VUCA world below, where we made a start to imagining what a team might be thinking in a VUCA world.
Leading through volatility with vision
How your team might be thinking in volatile times:
What will I be expected to do tomorrow? Is what I do today still relevant tomorrow?
What can help your team: Vision
Your team is looking to you to guide them through these times. They need steering; they’re on the boat, but they would like to know where it’s going. This is where your vision comes in.
Your vision should be simple & authentic. It should be repeated often. And equally importantly, you should live by it. If, for example, you’ve had to adapt the vision, or pivot because of COVID-19 to include more cost-saving measures, then don’t arrive at the office in your new Porsche.
By understanding the bigger picture, your team members will understand HOW and WHY what they’re doing today is going to be relevant tomorrow. A simple vision helps everyone in their individual roles understand what they are contributing to the journey.
Another tip:
Ask your team members if they know what the vision is. Ask them if they agree with it. Ensure they’re on board, ensure that they know where you’re going (and that they want to come with you).
Leading through uncertainty with understanding
How your team might be thinking in uncertain times:
Do I still have a job at the end of the month?
What can help your team: Understanding
Your team has their own private worries — perhaps they send money back to their home country at the end of the month, perhaps they just put down a huge deposit on their dream house, perhaps they have big medical bills to pay. Or perhaps their job is a huge part of how they define their worth.
Whatever it is that your team have to worry about, job insecurity is something that no-one wants to have to worry about, wherever you are in the world.
Being transparent about the reality of your company in the current world climate is key. Being understanding of whatever worries your team have, is also key. In a VUCA setting, that can mean setting aside more time for your team to allow them to express their concerns, and actually listening to what they have to say.
Ways you can do this:
- set up a weekly ‘drop-in’ time that you block for them to come to you for informal conversations, questions etc
- simply just repeating the offer to your team that they can at any time request time from you to chat about any concerns they have
- ensuring that your team has the necessary time off they need, or flexibility of time or place to work
- communicate the process — if your company may have to/does have to make lay-offs as a result of COVID-19 (or any other unavoidable reason), be open about the process, what you’re doing to avoid this happening.
Looking for inspiration on how to lead empathetically through understanding?
Look now further than the communication from Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky (you can see the compassionate message and an analysis of it here) as he let 25% of his workforce go on May 5th.
Leading through complexity with clarity and communication
How your team might be thinking in complex times:
I don’t feel comfortable doing what I’m doing — I’ve never been in this situation before.
What can help your team: Clarity & Communication
With so many moving parts, and potentially new responsibilities and relationships, the VUCA world is a complex one, and it’s your job as leader to demystify it for your team.
How do you lead with clarity?
- Call to action — be clear on what it is you’re asking your team to do and what resources they have available to achieve it.
- Context — be clear as to how this action impacts the goals of the team or the company. Explaining how what you’re asking them to do will help the team, other teams, or the company, is important. If it is something that is new for your team, explain why you’ve asked them specifically to do it.
- Consistency — be consistent in what you’re asking your team to do & be an example. If you’re asking your team to change their working habits to adapt to the new reality, then make sure you change yours too.
(We’ve used the 3-C model from Connect Consulting Group as the basis for the description above)
Communication is paramount throughout complex times. Practice communicating complex ideas simply. Use real life examples to illustrate what you are trying to communicate. Check in with your team that they’re understanding what you’re trying to articulate.
Leading through ambiguity with agility and adaptability
How your team might be thinking in ambiguous times:
I’m doing things that aren’t in my job description right now.
What can help your team: Agility & Adaptability
Agile leadership, coupled with organisational agility, is essential to supporting your team through ambiguity. In the book ‘Leadership Agility’ by Bill Joiner and Stephen Josephs, the authors outline the levels of leadership agility that leaders progress through (or perhaps should strive to progress through):
- Expert: makes tactical organisational improvements, supervise teams, identify and solve key problems, and sell their solutions to others.
- Achiever: sets clear organisational objectives, lead strategic change, motivate and orchestrate team performance, and engage in challenging cross-boundary conversations.
- Catalyst: can lead transformative change, develop high participation teams, and collaborative with others to develop creative, high-leverage solutions to tough organisational issues.
For looking more into agile leadership, and for some excellent resources on agility from the research of their book, head to Joiner & Joseph’s website: https://changewise.biz/.
When your team is feeling the pressure of doing things outside their job description, ensure you’re sharing the organisational objectives, that you’re keeping them motivated and that you’re collaborating with your team.
Why empathetic leadership is so vital in a VUCA world
Still not convinced that empathetic leadership is a key skill to help your team navigate the world right now? I love this snippet from The Complete Leader about the importance of empathy in business:
“Empathy, then, is the doorway into deeper, safer, more vulnerable relationships, which are not only more rewarding than their shallow alternatives, but also the basis on which organizations can achieve optimal results. Relationships and empathic communication are the wheels on which the company moves. Want to understand the health of an organization? Look at the level of empathy in the leadership. There is nothing more important.”
I couldn’t have said it better myself.
