The transport sector has a serious lack of empathy which can lead to major ramifications. In fact, the latest research highlights that direct leaders, senior leaders and entire workplace cultures within transport organizations exhibit little empathy. And, when it is expressed, it’s often without meaningful action and support. This is a huge problem because it directly impacts engagement, belonging, staff turnover and productivity.  

The facts are revealing. When 1,485 transport leaders, HR professionals and employees were questioned it was found that transport is one of the least empathetic sectors. Only 53% of direct leaders in the sector were identified as empathetic, and this falls to 47% when it comes to senior leaders. Plus, a mere 45% of transport employees say that empathy is a core part of their organization’s workplace culture — the fourth lowest figure out of 35 industries, with the most unempathetic being environmental, waste management and government organizations.

Being treated with empathy is a crucial part of the employee experience, leading to a greater sense of fulfillment at work, belonging and community. When it is present, employees have a desire to stay at the organization for longer, are more likely to perform great work and are less likely to become stressed and burnt-out. It therefore makes smart business sense to champion and nurture an empathetic approach.

The problem is that organizations can’t always define what empathy is, and understand how to best practice it. After all, empathy, by itself, is a shared feeling — it’s about seeking to understand and care about what another person is experiencing. So how can you take this “feeling,” and make an organization empathetic? 

There are three key elements to achieving this. 

Firstly, empathetic leadership must be championed, and this means approaching it with purpose and design. You can’t just hire people who seem empathetic and hope they interact empathetically with their teams. 

Secondly, leaders must understand that empathy can’t just be about “warm and fuzzy;” feelings but must be focused on action, with effective empathetic leadership always needing to be accompanied with meaningful follow-up and support — in other words “practical empathy.”

Practical empathy can be replicated across an organization, and so can be taught and rolled out. In fact, it can be achieved by following six steps: Focusing on the person requiring help and support and prioritizing their needs and challenges; seeking a better understanding of their daily employee experience; actively listening to their issues and not just showing concern; remaining open to different viewpoints; taking follow-up action on their behalf; and being aware of boundaries so that the leader doesn’t become the employee’s sole support network. 

The lynchpin of practical empathy is the action taken as a result of listening, understanding, and having genuine concern for the person. This is quite different from just asking leaders to show concern but not insisting on any follow-up action. Examples of practical empathy could be some helpful problem-solving, or might include introducing greater flexibility in an employee’s job after they raise concerns about their difficulties around juggling work and home life. It could also involve putting employees in touch with a range of support services to help with their personal and/or family issues such as mental health services, family and career counseling, or childcare services. The key here is that any problem is acknowledged and proactively addressed.

The third stage to nurturing empathy is to encourage a feedback culture so that employees are given a voice, and are allowed to use it. A number of different mechanisms can be deployed to invite ongoing employee feedback, from surveys and focus groups, through to regular one-to-one meetings. This naturally creates a better understanding of the employee experience and any challenges they face. Further, by actively asking employees about their opinions, ideas, hopes and struggles, the organization will be more attuned to what their workers want and how to improve their everyday working lives. 

When organizations have an empathetic culture, the business impacts are considerable. There is a 636% greater chance that employees will experience a sense of fulfillment at work, and a strong workplace community is 658% more likely. Plus, employees will feel 64% more valued and are likely to stay with the organization for another three or more years.

All in all, empathetic leadership is so much more than leaders saying caring words when employees are struggling. It’s about taking the time to listen to and to understand employees’ challenges, then following up with meaningful actions. It’s about having ongoing, authentic conversations with employees and inviting continuous feedback. And it’s about actively wanting to make a positive difference to people’s working lives. When this is achieved, employees will not only want to stick around. They’ll feel motivated to deliver their very best work, again and again.

Ben Macintyre-Cathles is European culture and engagement strategist from O.C. Tanner.