An article titled “Empathy in Leadership: A Blessing or a Curse?“, written by Dr. Theano V. Kalavana and Dr. Philios Andreou, BTS Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Iberia and Other Markets, was recently published in the July 2016 issue of 世界经理人, or Chief Executive Magazine. This article explores the role of empathy in leadership, and how different types of empathy can relate to different leadership styles.
The article states, “One of the elements that successful leaders share is their way of working with people and being sensitive to the people’s needs. Great leaders know that this makes a difference in their followers’ reactions, and even their productivity….[However,] even though evidence supports the importance of empathy in leadership relationships and tasks, there is danger in being empathic in such a way as to lose or diminish some executive leadership skills such as planning, organizing, problem-solving, and decision making.” It then goes on to discuss different empathy and leadership styles, and how leaders can develop their empathy and leadership skills in order to lead most effectively.