How to build empathy in business

Our behaviors change in times of crisis, as do the ways in which we communicate and process information. Crises tend to provoke four distinct cognitive responses, according to Psychology of a Crisis, a report on crisis and emergency risk communication from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

First, we organically simplify the messages we get. In times of crisis we don’t remember as much as we normally do because we are distracted by worry. If the message is less than crystal clear, our chance of misinterpreting it is much greater.

Second, we hold onto our current beliefs. In a crisis we often default to prior assumptions and behavior patterns. During the pandemic, for example, many people ignored official pleas to wear masks, even though the data clearly showed that wearing a mask reduced the risk of contracting or transmitting the virus. This behavior wasn’t just a matter of selfishness. It was also caused by fear, and the inability to process information in anything but the simplest way. (Many mask skeptics didn’t think the virus could affect them personally because they couldn’t see it.)

Third, we tend to reach out to get even more information. More often than not, we are looking for better, happier information so that we can contradict something we heard that is discomforting. Because people are always more receptive to information that makes them feel better, it’s crucial that businesses provide accurate, clear data and recommendations in times of crisis.

Finally, we tend to believe the first message we hear. It’s our way of filling in blanks and uncertainty during a crisis. The takeaway for business leaders is that customers and employees will interpret your first message as signal. Everything else is noise.

At the same time, companies worldwide initiated work-from-home policies for their employees. That was driven by necessity, but many businesses displayed empathy in how they treated workers during the pandemic. (I’ll leave the companies anonymous.)

Some companies announced there would be no layoffs or salary cuts during the crisis. Others implemented technology purchase allowances so their employees could buy webcams, Wi-Fi upgrades, ergonomic chairs, and other gear to make them more comfortable and productive while working at home.

And some companies made clear to employees that there would be no repercussions if they needed time off during the work week to take care of kids, elderly parents, or even just themselves.

The common thread? These companies all showed empathy by making clear that employee well-being was their first priority.

Here are concrete steps you can take to build a more empathetic business. First, empathy can’t just be a temporary response to a crisis. It means committing to permanent changes in how you treat customers and employees.

Also, empathy is not just a matter of implementing the right programs and policies. Fundamentally, it’s about culture. Empathy must permeate all aspects of your corporate culture. If your culture doesn’t encourage empathetic behavior by employees, you will not succeed in building an empathetic business.

For example, many employers now use digital monitoring tools to track the daily activities of remote employees. These tools have been around for years in office settings. To many workers, however, being monitored through your home computer feels like a more serious privacy violation.

However, remote monitoring can be done effectively and without rancor if the company culture supports transparency and trust. In a June 2020 CNBC article, Atlas COO Rachel Welch, said managers “should go into remote work conditions with trust and empathy, not with fear and close monitoring.”

So let employees know what you are doing and why you are doing it—for example, monitoring may be required for regulatory compliance. And take the time to listen to their concerns. Much like a friendship or a marriage, honest dialogue helps build trust between employers and employees.

For me, the paradigmatic example of business empathy during a crisis happened in 1982, when a lunatic (who was never caught) injected cyanide into Tylenol capsules, killing seven people in the Chicago area. I lived there at the time. Trust me, it was very scary.

The FDA and the FBI told Tylenol manufacturer Johnson & Johnson that it didn’t need to recall Tylenol products completely. The feds also advised Johnson & Johnson that it had no legal liability for injuries or deaths that resulted from tampering with the capsules.

CEO James Burke ignored this advice. Instead he announced that the company’s first priority would be to “protect the people.” Burke ordered a complete Tylenol recall. He established a fund to compensate the families of all the victims. The company set up a 24/7 hotline that anyone could call to get information about Johnson & Johnson’s response to the crisis. Over the long term, Johnson & Johnson started delivering its medications in caplets rather than capsules to prevent future attackers from injecting them with poison.

In short, the company went out of its way to respond empathetically to a crisis for which it wasn’t legally responsible. This strategy paid off for Johnson & Johnson: A 2018 Reader’s Digest survey found Tylenol was the most trusted pain reliever in the U.S.

I don’t think business conditions will ever revert to what they were before the pandemic. I’m not alone, as evidenced by all the chatter about the next or new normal that you hear in business circles these days. No matter what the world looks like after COVID, business empathy shouldn’t be a situational response that companies discard after the crisis is over.

Why not? For one thing, there are clear business benefits to empathy. It can help companies retain and grow the trust of customers, employees, and the world at large. More importantly, empathy is good for the soul of your employees, your customers, and your business.

At the end of the day, business empathy provides the emotional and social framework for decisions that relieve fear and help people in need. So why would you want that effort to end after the crisis inevitably passes? If you are a truly empathetic business, then you wouldn’t, would you?