It’s cool to be kind: The value of empathy at work

Everybody hurts sometimes, R.E.M. once famously sang. And if you’re in human resources, your job is to help. On this episode of McKinsey Talks Talent, McKinsey leaders and talent experts Brooke Weddle and Bryan Hancock join Wendy Miller, McKinsey’s chief people officer for North America, as well as global editorial director Lucia Rahilly, to discuss the dynamics that are making HR tougher than ever—as well as what leaders can do differently to begin turning morale around.See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Neurodivergent people make up a substantial percentage of the global population. How can companies best put their distinctive capabilities to work? On this episode of McKinsey Talks Talent, McKinsey senior partner Brooke Weddle, partner Bryan Hancock, and global editorial director Lucia Rahilly speak with Dr. Lawrence Fung, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University and the director of the Stanford Neurodiversity Project, about the productivity and creativity that neurodivergent employees can bring to organizations—and how employers can support them.See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Middle management was already a tough gig. Then generative AI (gen AI) entered the fray. A year after the publication of their book Power to the Middle: Why Managers Hold the Keys to the Future of Work (Harvard Business Review Press, July 2023), McKinsey partners Bryan Hancock and Emily Field join global editorial director Lucia Rahilly to revisit whether and why middle managers matter, what leaders could do differently to make more of the managers on their team, and how gen AI could change middle managers’ jobs—for the better. See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Plumbers, carpenters, builders, and engineers are in short supply. What will it take to meet the demand for these skills in the United States and globally? In this episode of McKinsey Talks Talent, Brooke Weddle and Bryan Hancock join host Lucia Rahilly to discuss how to attract—and keep—people in these roles and drive productivity. The following is an edited transcript of their conversation.See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Narcissism. Overconfidence. Low EQ. Why do we persist in selecting for leadership traits that hamper organizational progress—and leave the right potential leaders in the wrong roles?  In this episode of McKinsey Talks Talent, Dr. Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, author of Why Do So Many Incompetent Men Become Leaders?: (And How to Fix It) (Harvard Business Review Press, March 2019), joins McKinsey talent leaders Bryan Hancock and Brooke Weddle, as well as global editorial director Lucia Rahilly, to discuss why the traits that propel us to the top seem to diverge so widely from those that make us great leaders—as well as how to choose stronger, more successful, and more diverse candidates for leadership roles.      See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Yes, organizational health still drives long-term performance—but the way leaders measure and diagnose health should change, new research shows.  McKinsey partners Bryan Hancock and Brooke Weddle join global editorial director Lucia Rahilly to discuss McKinsey’s recently updated Organizational Health Index: how it works, what has changed, and why it’s still among the best predictors of whether your company will thrive over the long term.See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

Empathy: we all aspire to it, but does it really make a performance difference in the workplace? Definitely, according to Jamil Zaki, a research psychologist at Stanford University and author of The War for Kindness: Building Empathy in a Fractured World (Crown, June 2019). In this episode of McKinsey Talks Talent, Jamil joins McKinsey talent leaders Bryan Hancock and Brooke Weddle, with global editorial director Lucia Rahilly, to make the case for investing in empathic behavior—for reasons including higher productivity, a stronger workplace culture, and better organizational health—as well as to discuss how to go about cultivating kindness at work.See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

As the impetus of New Year’s resolutions starts to fade, the year’s real work begins. Whatcan the dizzying pace of change in 2023 teach us about what’s next? Join McKinsey partners Bryan Hancock and Brooke Weddle, in conversation with global editorial director Lucia Rahilly, as they speak about the trends that shaped last year’s talent landscape—and those poised to redefine its contours in 2024.See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

‘Humans in the loop’: It’s the angst-ameliorating mantra for the new age of generative AI. But what does it really mean? In this episode of McKinsey Talks Talent, Stanford University professor Melissa Valentine joins McKinsey partners Bryan Hancock and Brooke Weddle, along with global editorial director Lucia Rahilly, to discuss human-centered artificial intelligence: what it is, how it improves performance, and how it can help shift skittish employees’ mindsets from “ugh” to “wow.”See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information

With the rise of more technical roles across industries and sectors, and a shortage of people to fill them, skills-based hiring could help organizations access new talent pools. McKinsey partners Bryan Hancock and new co-host Brooke Weddle join global editorial director Lucia Rahilly in conversation.See www.mckinsey.com/privacy-policy for privacy information