Leading with kindness

As part of J5’s mission to invest time, thought, and resources into examining how forward-thinking organizations are using kindness as a competitive advantage in their respective sectors, we recently spent time with Vibrant Communities’ CEO, Meaghon Reid. Our contention - Kindness as a core philosophy has dramatic effects for organizations on multiple fronts.

Vibrant Communities is a poverty reduction collaboration between United Way of Calgary and Area, Momentum, and the City of Calgary. They steward Enough for All, an initiative with the mission to ‘create opportunities to align and leverage the work of hundreds of organizations and thousands of Calgarians to reduce poverty in our city.’ It's easy to see the mission of Vibrant Communities is driven by kindness. But what does it look like under the hood? Our interest in Meaghon is in the workplace culture that has been cultivated in Vibrant Communities and how it relates to kindness.

To know Meaghon is to know what leading with kindness look like. She is one of those people who elevates the energy of a room when she walks through the door. You don’t need to know anything about her background or the work her organization is engaged in to understand that she stands for kindness. Meaghon has brought this level of kindness to the organization she runs and the culture she has helped cultivate. Here is where our interest in the competitive advantages of kindness begins with Meaghon.

Why a culture of kindness?

There are many ways a culture based in kindness can have positive effects on a workplace. For Meaghon, this philosophy has consistently produced high performing, high retention teams. Her style of leadership creates a safe space for people to ‘bring their whole, messy selves’ to the workplace. The outputs - improved morale, enhanced collaboration, and increased employee engagement. According to the Harvard Business Review, the positive connection created by a culture of kindness breeds a subsequent culture of collaboration and innovation. It also reduces burnout and absenteeism, and in the long-term creating a reputation that will attract new talent to your organization.

Having this safe space fosters a deeper social connection in her team. It enhances interpersonal relationships and brings meaning and purpose to the shared work environment. It also improves good-will toward management and fosters appreciation for the organization. And your employees feel valued. This is especially important with the rise in remote work, where employees often feel disconnected. Fostering a culture of kindness increases motivation by allowing us to feel and retain connection to each other.

Mental Health in the Workplace

A culture of kindness is especially important to address mental health in the workplace. A problem that has been gaining traction in recent years. This is where the increased social connection created by a kinder workplace is important. Meaghon’s recalls a mentor who used to tell her, ‘The world is a rough place and people need a soft place to land.’

We all experience challenges in life, big and small, that eat up our mental bandwidth. And some of us deal with it better than others. But we all need help from time to time. The most impactful thing people can do to support one another is to check in, actively listen, and genuinely care. Coincidentally, this is kind behaviour we’re talking about. A workplace that promotes kindness and support, one that encourages people to show up as themselves, is an environment where workers have more mental capacity.

A system of isolation

Recently, one of Meaghon’s consultants interviewed 12 employees from different levels of multiple organizations on the topic of mental health in the workplace. 11 out of 12 interviewed emphatically confirmed they felt unsafe talking about personal concerns in the workplace. Most stated they would be uncomfortable using counselling services through benefits programs for fear of being ‘found out.’

Work culture in Canada is not generally that ‘soft place.’ We live in a competitive system where vulnerability is often seen as weakness. We wear masks of professionalism and leave our issues at the door.

How to build kindness

There are two categories to address on the journey to building a culture of kindness within your organization – policy and person-to-person.

The policy piece requires structuring your organization to be human focused. This means shifting how resources are distributed to serve your employees before your bottom line – fair wages, benefits programs, promoting work/life balance, creating opportunities for growth. Put your money where your mouth is. According to Meaghon, “You can absolutely build this into the system. You can inject kindness into systems, polices, protocols…”

Person to person encompasses the social aspects of the workplace that create an environment of comradery and support. There are many ways to achieve this – compliments, random acts of kindness, peer-to-peer recognition programs, create an environment that supports mental health. In the journey toward kindness, it is important for leaders within your organization to lead the way.

Being vulnerable and open about where you’re at and what you’re going through is what creates a lot of those above mentioned benefits. And vulnerability and openness can only exist in the workplace if the culture is 100% supportive across all levels. It’s not about what you say, it’s about how you make people feel.

Where a lot of organizations fail is integrity. Carefully crafted messaging isn’t the same as a genuine culture of kindness. According to Forbes, “Kindness has to be provided without any thought of reward. It has to be authentic, not deployed as a strategy for getting something you want. If it is genuine, it is sustainable.”

Leave it at home!

‘The workplace isn’t a place for your personal life. It’s a place for work. Leave it at home…’ This is the sticky spot for those who don’t understand the power of putting resources behind creating a kind workplace culture. Inside this sentiment are hints of ‘this is how it’s always been done’ and ‘I had to struggle through it, so should everyone else.’

The world is changing. And the way we treat employees is changing as well. Not only is it our morally obligation to treat people well when we are able, but there is good science to back it’s benefits a quick internet search away. And why not in the workplace?

The workplace for many is their main social outlet and is where people spend most of their time and attention in a day. It is a fertile space for human development, if we can create the right conditions for development. Care about people caring about tasks and outcomes are not mutually exclusive. They are complimentary. Creating a culture of kindness doesn’t mean you’re creating a culture of lazy pushovers. You are creating a culture of empowered and engaged people with loyalty to your organization.

On the same path

Our mission at J5 is to build a case that true kindness and caring for those you work and engage with is an advantage for your organization. And to humble lead by example alongside organizations like Vibrant Communities. The challenge… this isn’t built overnight. Creating a genuinely kind and caring culture is both an institutional and a person journey for each member within the organization. It requires both learning and unlearning, empathy and vulnerability, and resources.

Fortunately, kindness has a momentum. The better people understand the power of kindness, the more we will grow and thrive.