Acting with Empathy and Compassion
Genuinely seeking to understand and respect others’ perspectives and emotions; encouraging a culture of compassion, empathy and support within and beyond the organization.
Level 1 Seeks to understand and validate others’ perspectives and emotions.
BEHAVIORS
- Expresses an interest in learning about others’ opinions, feelings, and needs.
- Uses active listening skills to understand others’ thoughts and emotions.
- Observes others’ body language to understand their emotions, discerning the discrepancies in the message communicated through body language and spoken words.
- Respects individual differences in opinions and emotional responses.
- Pays attention to signs of distress in others.
- Acknowledges the merit of others’ points of view, which may be different from one’s own.
- Affirms others’ emotions, especially in times of change and uncertainty.
QUESTIONS
- Describe a situation where it was important to understand the merits of others’ viewpoints that were different from your own.
Probing Questions
* How did you go about this?
* How did they respond?
* How did this affect your views?
* Would you have done anything differently?
- Tell us about a time where you paid particular attention and listened with the objective of understanding the feelings or perspectives of others.
Probing Questions
* How did you do this?
* Why did you feel it was necessary for this instance?
* How did they respond?
* How did this impact you?
Level 2 Exemplifies empathy and compassion in leading a team.
BEHAVIORS
- Keeps communication channels open with team members.
- Coordinates efforts among others to help team members facing challenges.
- Suspends judgments and evaluations of what others offer by staying open, curious and flexible.
- Expresses appreciation and gratitude for team members’ strengths and contributions, regardless of whether there are areas for improvement.
- Engages in dialogues with team members to help them reflect on past experiences and find out how to develop or solve problems.
- Focuses efforts on helping team members resolve the issue when they make mistakes, instead of complaining or placing blames.
- Encourages team members to speak openly and raise constructive complaints.
QUESTIONS
- Describe a period where you felt it was extremely important to ensure that channels of communication remained open with each member of your team.
Probing Questions
* What triggered this feeling?
* What did you do to achieve this?
* What effect did this have on the team members?
* How did this impact your relationship with the team?
- Describe a time where you demonstrated appreciation for your team's efforts.
Probing Questions
* What was the reason for doing this?
* What did you do to show gratitude?
* How was this received by the team?
* What was the short and longer-term impact?
Level 3 Demonstrates empathy and compassion in difficult or complex situations.
BEHAVIORS
- Offers emotional support and/or tangible assistance to others experiencing difficulties at work or in their personal life.
- Expedites the allocation of resources to help team members in need of help in urgent situations.
- Considers team members’ perspectives and emotions, when making business decisions that may not be popular.
- Tailor's communication with challenging individuals or groups.
- Seeks to understand others’ complex or underlying needs, motivations, emotions, in order to communicate effectively despite the sensitivity of the situation.
- Deals with resistance by acknowledging positive intentions and creating engagement.
- Gives team members feedback that is sensitive to their individual situation, especially when addressing performance gaps.
- Models self-care and positive coping strategies in stressful situations
QUESTIONS
- Describe a situation where you had to take action that you knew would not be well received by your team.
Probing Questions
* How did you communicate the information?
* What did you do to ease the situation?
* How did you deal with the team's reaction?
* What would you do differently?
- Tell us about a particularly difficult performance discussion with a member of your staff.
Probing Questions
* What made it so difficult?
* What did you do to prepare for the discussion?
* What approach did you use to address the issues?
* How did the individual react to your efforts?
Level 4 Instills empathy and compassion in the organization’s culture.
BEHAVIORS
- Shares stories of compassionate acts by organization members with the wider organization.
- Affirms the value of a culture where people feel safe to share their thoughts and emotions, especially in challenging times.
- Provides a “personal connection” by being present and accessible to organization members.
- Improves business practices so that organization members have the flexibility to express the need for help and to provide empathy and compassion to others.
- Develops guidelines for respectful and compassionate communication, creating a compassionate workplace.
- Ensures that policies and procedures support empathy and compassion in the organization, removing systemic barriers.
QUESTIONS
- Share a situation where it was necessary for you to create a safer environment for sharing thoughts, emotions and viewpoints.
Probing Questions
* Why was this necessary?
* What action did you take?
* How did you communicate this to staff?
* What impact did this have on the organizational culture?
- Describe a situation where you recognized the need to instill a more empathetic and compassionate organizational culture.
Probing Questions
* What were the circumstances?
* Why was it important for you to take action?
* How did you go about this?
* Describe some of the changes as a result of your actions.
Level 5 Promotes compassionate acts in the community.
BEHAVIORS
- Represents the organization in participating in events/initiatives that promotes compassion in the community.
- Acts as a senior management sponsor to organization members’ initiatives in helping those in need in the community.
- Encourages emergent, bottom-up efforts for compassionate actions inside and outside the organization.
- Builds partnerships outside the organization to address issues that call for compassionate actions.
- Defines the organizational strategy for engaging in compassionate efforts in the community.
QUESTIONS
- Give an example of a time when you promoted community activities, events or initiatives focused on those in need.
Probing Questions
* What were the circumstances?
* How did you identify the need for action?
* How did you facilitate the links between the organization and community stakeholders?
* What were the outcomes?
- Describe a time when you provided senior management support to employee activities focused on helping those in need.
Probing Questions
* Why was it important to do this?
* How did you participate?
* What support did you give?
* How was this activity recognized within the organization?