NTMWD 2025 Summer

How business can weather COVID-19: start with empathy to employees

by | May 6, 2020 | Opinion

Major U.S. busi­nesses are adjust­ing operations, laying off employees or reduc­ing hours in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

It’s uncharted territory for the nation, and companies from large brands to small busi­nesses, like everyone else, are operating without a playbook to deal with an unprecedented public health threat that will also have economic implica­tions. How businesses adjust to the pandemic and respond to this “new normal” is critical to the future of their business.

The most important part is showing empathy to employees – now more than ever in these uncertain times.

While every company is dealing with the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, it’s im­portant to keep in mind that your employees are being af­fected in more ways than one.

Added challenges to daily life now include your partner working next to you, your chil­dren being home from school, and having to keep an extra close eye on elderly relatives.

In these unusual circum­stances, people will notice which companies are treating their employees with empathy and compassion and which are not.

A business leader’s response during a time like this defines who they are as a leader.

I think this challenging time could be used by business own­ers to assess their company cul­ture and consider that how they treat employees is central to that culture and vital for busi­ness results.

Here’s how leaders can show empathy to employees, strengthen company culture and drive performance:

Lead with support, not force. Culture starts at the top, and the best results come when leaders support their people and help them get the most out of life, rather than trying to squeeze them to work harder and harder.

People can sacrifice for the job for only so long before they burn out. It may sound counter­intuitive, but sometimes priori­tizing life over work actually improves the work product.

Once you hire good people, you don’t have to push them with crazy deadlines to squeeze productivity out of them.

Build a team of caring peo­ple. Business is a team sport. To have an empathetic culture, you need people who care for each other and work well to­gether.

Build teams by looking for people who lead with empathy.

Don’t hire jerks. People who are super-talented but can’t get along with others tend to de­stroy the team dynamics, and the work product suffers.

Define a positive culture – and the work. Showing empa­thy to employees can be an en­gine generating creativity and productivity.

The internal culture at a company defines the work the company produces. Culture in­fluences who chooses to work for you, how long they stay, and the quality of work they do.

And the core of the culture is empathy, starting with employ­ees and extending to customers and the communities that you live in.

There’s a strong connec­tion between a healthy work culture, which inspires people, and the work customers are re­ceiving.

That kind of company makes sure customers are treated the same way they are being treated.

Now more than ever, empa­thy, kindness and compassion are important values to keep at the forefront of your organiza­tion. Business leaders can take the lead in doing the right thing, starting with their employees.

For more stories like this, see the May 6 issue or subscribe online.

By Ed Mitzen, Forbes author of More Than a Number

Collin Summer 2025

Deprecated: Creation of dynamic property ET_Builder_Module_Comments::$et_pb_unique_comments_module_class is deprecated in /home/csmediatexas/wylienews/wp-content/themes/Divi/includes/builder/class-et-builder-element.php on line 1380

0 Comments

Subscribe RH Love

Related News

Clutching the past

Clutching the past

Columnist John Moore learned to drive on a stick shift. He still uses a clutch to operate his tractor. Courtesy John Moore One of the necessities of my youth is now one of your best bets to prevent vehicle theft: a stick shift. I watch a lot of YouTube, and...

read more
Polished

Polished

Columnist John Moore still shines his own shoes. As long as he can find the polish to buy. Photo: John Moore In some cultures, people wash the feet of guests who arrive at their home. At my parents’ house, I didn’t wash the feet of guests, but I did offer to shine...

read more
The chain gang

The chain gang

Columnist John Moore misses the old chain stores, one of which, Gibson’s, still exists in Kerrville, Texas. Photo John Moore Online shopping has turned us into couch potatoes who buy more than we ever used to. Adding items to an imaginary cart and clicking, “Buy Now,”...

read more
 A free gift inside

 A free gift inside

Columnist John Moore eats a lot of jelly, but not for the reason you might think. Photo: John Moore My sister and I would make a beeline for the cereal aisle at the Piggly Wiggly while my mom did the shopping.  Decisions, decisions. Did we want to roll the dice...

read more
Jumping to conclusions

Jumping to conclusions

Columnist John Moore finds himself a little lost with new technology. Sometimes lost a lot. Courtesy John Moore Folks aren’t counting on each other like we were 50 years ago. And technology is the wedge that’s come between us. Our parents didn’t worry about us much...

read more
Gardens and Grandma

Gardens and Grandma

Columnist John Moore didn’t like gardens as a kid. That’s changed thanks to his grandmothers. Photo: John Moore As a kid, I hated the vegetable garden. If you stood on our back porch, it was to your left. It took up the entire corner of our large yard. To me, gardens...

read more
Insurance crisis hitting public schools

Insurance crisis hitting public schools

Severe weather from hurricanes and other weather events has not spared the state’s public schools, resulting in skyrocketing property insurance costs, the Houston Chronicle reported. Insurance costs for districts have increased by 44% statewide in the past five years,...

read more
A numbers game

A numbers game

You don't see phone books much anymore. But even when they were around, columnist John Moore was nowhere to be found in one.Courtesy John Moore For those of us who once made our living working on the radio, one of the main competitors we had for advertising dollars...

read more
Order photos