Berlin Smiling smugly, he sits enthroned in the executive chair, barks at his employees with brief orders and overturns resolutions on a whim. Don Draper, creative director of a fictional advertising agency in the US hit series “Mad Men”, which is set in New York in the 1960s, is something like the prototype of the manager who makes decisions alone and in an authoritarian manner. The motto: I can do it, I am a genius. Empathy? Social skills? Belongs in kindergarten!
The fictional character Draper is emblematic of everything that modern management philosophies say managers should no longer stand for. Today, mindful staff management, communication and transparency are required. Some brochures for leadership seminars are therefore like an invitation to a spiritual yoga retreat. Further training in “Mindful Leadership” and empathic leadership are just as trendy as social skills training.
Soft skills, as HR managers call these “soft” leadership competencies, are on the rise, says Jana Völkel-Kitzmann, Managing Director of the Management Institute Dr. A. Kitzmann in Munster. Here executives can take part in two-day seminars on “Emotional Intelligence”, among other things. In contrast to intellectual performance (IQ), this is not considered to be genetically determined, but rather as an ability that can only be developed in the course of life.
The logic behind this type of training: Those who learn to decipher the emotional states of their employees should be able to lead with fewer conflicts and thus better. “Managers act more and more as coaches for their employees,” says Völkel-Kitzmann. Anyone who wants to be a good boss beyond professional competence benefits from a high level of emotional intelligence.
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Mindful weekend course?
But can you actually learn empathy and mindfulness like business English? And if so, can such skills be developed with the help of a single weekend seminar?
It is enough to create a basis, says Völkel-Kitzmann: “During this time you can get the basics and a few impulses – emotional intelligence and empathy are best developed for a lifetime.” The theory blocks become psychological and communicative models deliberately kept short.
The seminar focuses on practical exercises on specific case studies. The course participants bring some everyday situations with them from their own experience, while the seminar leaders suggest other scenarios. If desired, the reenacted dialogues, such as conflict discussions with employees, can be filmed and later analyzed together.
Völkel-Kitzmann sees an advantage in external further training over coaching in the workplace. As a provider of such a format, it has to say something like that. But she also gives good reasons: “It is often easier to reflect on your behavior together with managers from other companies than with your own colleagues.” The impartiality of the other participants enables a clearer picture of one’s own impact on others.
A self-assessment that is as good as possible is actually becoming more important, because expectations of managers’ soft skills are growing. According to a current study by the Fraunhofer Institute for Work and Organizational Research and the German Society for Personnel Management, trust, appreciative communication and empathy are now the most important management skills. The three points were named more than twice as often by the employees surveyed as the factor of specialist knowledge. The trend towards hybrid work accelerated by the pandemic has further intensified this development, according to the authors.
Ilka Piechowiak considers this development to be questionable. “Managers shouldn’t be therapists, not even the friends of their employees,” says the Hamburg management trainer. What bothers you is that the empathy factor is increasingly coming to the fore when it comes to modern leadership style. Being able to empathize with the employees is generally helpful. At the same time, however, the constant striving for harmony carries the risk of the superiors’ role clarity being lost and their professional distance from the team being lost.
Course instead of conflict resolution
From Piechowiak’s point of view, some companies make it too easy for themselves. Instead of identifying the problem in the event of a conflict, the responsible manager is often simply sent for further training, “so that he becomes more empathetic”. Above all, it would be advisable to reflect on the situation in the company.
Völkel-Kitzmann is also familiar with such cases. In your experience, however, they are rather rare. She estimates that only five percent of the participants in her seminar on emotional intelligence came at the request of their employer, because the team had previously crunched. The vast majority register of their own accord.
The second big trend topic, besides empathy and emotional intelligence, is mindful leadership, in new German: “Mindful Leadership”. The leadership principle based on Buddhist teachings has spread in recent years from Silicon Valley in this country as well.
The aim of the training: Managers should take more time for leadership, communicate more consciously with their team, initially just perceive moods instead of evaluating them immediately. This includes regular feedback, including on emotional well-being.
Meditation for self-discovery
Self-regulation is at the center of the approach: getting to know your own self better, reflecting on personal feelings and behavior. The idea is that only those who are responsible for themselves can be open to others. Corresponding training formats use meditative training methods to some extent.
Career coach Piechowiak sees this as more of a fashion phenomenon, which lets the classic topic of appreciation appear in a new guise. “Basically it’s about: I have to like people in order to lead them and I have to take time for them.” A basis of every modern leadership principle.
There should be a consensus by now that management à la “Mad Men” fits into the present day about as well as full-smoked offices. To what extent a role play or meditation in the lotus position could contribute to reflecting on one’s own leadership behavior, however, it is better for every manager to decide for himself.
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