— Ari Cowan
The value of compassion cannot be over-emphasized.
Anyone can criticize. It takes a true believer to be compassionate. No greater burden can be borne by an individual than to know no one cares or understands.
Anyone can criticize. It takes a true believer to be compassionate. No greater burden can be borne by an individual than to know no one cares or understands.
— Arthur H. Stainback
Compassionate organizations are those that take responsibility to prevent and alleviate the suffering of all of its stakeholders. Stakeholders include employees, owners, customers, business partners, investors, suppliers, investors, and society. Compassionate organizations are not detached from these constituencies; rather they have a strong and abiding emotional connection and investment in them.
Creating Value
Compassionate organizations consciously work to be of continuing value to the world, not just shareholders. Their creation of value is not limited to financial returns, but includes social, emotional, environmental, experiential, and moral value. The things that matter to these organizations include profitability, quality of life, community, sustainability, right relationship (between all stakeholders), and universal prosperity. These organizations continually move toward life. They consistently work to embody wisdom, trust, generosity, accountability, honesty, service, cooperation, excellence, purposefulness, integrity, courage, meaning, productivity, tolerance, honor, courtesy, forgiveness, value to others, and compassion.
Hill and Stephens, in a paper appearing in Organizational Dynamics (2003), note that a compassionate organization:
"...recognizes and appreciates the needs and desires of major internal and external constituencies, and it operates to find synergies between the goals of these sub-groups and the larger institution. This vigilance goes beyond the traditional market-driven approach that was popularized during the latter part of the previous century, to include a fuller understanding of and dedication to meeting the many and varied requirements of human existence. While this attentiveness embraces constituencies beyond that of consumers and workers, the remainder of this sub-section will concentrate on these two in order to be consistent with earlier discussions."
An organization known for its compassion has a significant advantage over organizations engaged in similar types of business but that lack the compassion element. The contrasts between the two types of organizations are illustrated by their relationship to their employees and their customers.
Imagine Two Companies
Company A treats its employees, customer, shareholders, suppliers, and communities with understanding, reverence, and integrity. It values fairness, right action, and compassionate responsiveness to all stakeholders. When the economic downturn came, management (from the president through line supervisors) took cuts in pay so that layoffs were minimized. When customers had difficulty with their credit payments, the company initiated interest free grace periods, allowing customers to get back on their feet. Its employees conducted fund-raising events to create an emergency fund for those in extreme economic distress in the community.
Company B intentionally makes pay, benefits and working conditions bad in order to maximize profits. It is notorious for deceptive advertising practices and combative customer service. It has a policy of paying smaller vendors months after invoices are due, knowing that these small companies do not have the economic clout to enforce their contracts with Company B or resources to underwrite legal action to have the Company comply with its contracts. The Company uses aggressive and manipulative sales practices and has been sued by the Attorneys General in the states in which it does business. Its focus is on short-term profits and maximizing shareholder value, no matter the cost.
Which organization would you rather buy from? Which one would you be most willing to work for? How would it feel to be an employee of Company A as compared to Company B? As an employee, how committed to and engaged in Company A's success would you be? And to Company B's success?
The Powerful Link
An article from Knowledge@Australian School of Business (August 2012) notes that: "There's a powerful link between productivity and what has been identified as 'compassionate leadership' in organisations, observes Christina Boedker, a lecturer in accounting at the Australian School of Business and leader of a major business research study that looks at the links between leadership and organisational performance. The single greatest influence on profitability and productivity within an organisation, according to the research project – which to date has taken in data from more than 5,600 people in 77 organisations — is the ability of leaders to spend more time and effort developing and recognising their people, welcoming feedback, including criticism, and fostering co-operation among staff."
Compassionate leaders create compassionate organizations.
And compassionate is good business.
And compassionate is good business.
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The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of the International Center for Compassionate Organizations.
Ari Cowan is the Executive Director at the The International Center for Compassionate Organizations in Louisville, Kentucky USA
Copyright © 2014 by Ari Cowan • Published with permission
The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of the International Center for Compassionate Organizations.
Ari Cowan is the Executive Director at the The International Center for Compassionate Organizations in Louisville, Kentucky USA
Copyright © 2014 by Ari Cowan • Published with permission
