Jacqueline Carter

Many leaders think they need to choose between being a good human being or tough, effective leader. But this dichotomy is false. Leaders who combine business wisdom with human compassion drive the highest levels of employee engagement, loyalty, resilience, and performance. They can navigate global turmoil and organizational uncertainty in today’s business landscape with better results and higher commitment from their employees. This interactive and engaging talk leverages research, stories, and key insights from the speaker’s book published by Harvard Business Review, Compassionate Leadership: How to Do Hard Things in a Human Way. In this session: learn how to navigate tough conversations and leadership challenges with care for your people; discover new, eye-opening research on the exponential benefits of combining human compassion with business wisdom; learn why compassion is critically different from empathy; assess your own leadership capabilities; learn a memorable framework; and gain practical tips for fostering psychological safety and trust.

Empathy is essential for leadership. But empathy itself is not sufficient and may even carry risks. It originates in the emotional centers of the brain and enables us to feel others’ suffering. But if we stop there, research shows that we are susceptible to bias, burnout, and poor decision-making. What leaders also need is the powerful mental quality of compassion, which originates in the cognitive centers of the brain and is action oriented. Compassion gives us the ability to take a step back from the emotion of empathy to ask, “How can I be of benefit?” In this engaging session, you will learn the neurological difference between empathy and compassion, the risks of empathy without compassion, and new and exciting research on the benefits of compassion for leaders. You will also learn how to rewire the brain to enhance empathy and compassion, as well as gain practical tips to apply both as a leader to enhance employee engagement, resilience, and diversity.

Organizational transformations are exceedingly difficult, with a 70% average failure rate. However, we can dramatically improve the odds of success by taking a human-centric approach. Neurologically, humans are wired to resist change. When leaders understand these neurological barriers and how to inspire employees, they are equipped to communicate effectively, motivate their people, and work productively through inevitable challenges. Drawing upon business, psychological, and neurological research, as well as years of experience with global clients, this session will explore how to unlock success by understanding and addressing the human factors of change and transformation.