Why Kindness In Leadership
When we think about the leader who had the biggest impact on our career, it’s usually because they were kind. We could relate to them, we trusted them. But they were also different, they got results, made changes, and delivered outcomes we never thought possible. They were credible. And there was something about their purpose, too. They weren’t the loudest or the smartest, but they had a conviction that made us want to show up.
This then is Kindness in Leadership, and the commercial impact is undeniable. As shown in the table, organisations led with Kindness consistently outperform: higher engagement, stronger retention, better decision‑making, and teams that deliver more, not because they’re told to, but because they choose to. Kindness isn’t a value; it’s a strategic advantage that drives measurable business performance.
The Tangible Impact on Profit
Organisations that prioritise the leadership traits defined by Kindness deliver measurable performance gains. The evidence is clear.
Kindness in Leadership is a competitive advantage. Leaders who apply it create high‑trust, high‑ accountability environments where people deliver more.
A 2022 Gallup/Workhuman study shows a 10,000‑person organisation can save $16.1m annually by embedding recognition into its culture. Yet global engagement has fallen to 21%, representing $438b in lost productivity with a potential $9.6tn upside if unlocked.
Leadership is therefore a commercial imperative. Organisations that embed kindness into their leadership DNA achieve:
- Higher retention and lower turnover costs
- Greater innovation and collaboration
- Stronger customer loyalty and brand equity
- Sustained revenue growth from engaged, high‑performing teams
The leaders who win the next decade will treat kindness as a strategic capability, one that drives resilience, excellence, and long‑term commercial success.
Put simply: no other leadership trait delivers this scale of impact.