Why cognitive empathy is the secret weapon that sharpens leadership decisions

Cognitive empathy can look like a gentle skill, but Christine Barton calls it one of the most difficult to master. The director general of Boston Consulting Group and main partner defines him not as feeling the emotions of someone else, but as understanding his perspective – see the context, the pressures and the prejudices that shape the way others interpret the world. “It’s an active curiosity,” she says. “You recognize their point of view without having to reflect their feelings.”

Leadership styles are swinging between command and control and more humanist approaches, but Barton supports today’s volatility – geopolitical shocks, rapid technological changes and “joker uncertainty” such as pandemics or climatic crises – make cognitive empathy essential. Once the leaders reach the summit, she notes, they often operate in a bubble. “The people around you are listening to reading (the) type of information to which you react well and start to feed more and what you react negatively, they start to feed you less.” Practice cognitive empathy “pierce this bubble” and obliges managers to seek various inputs to weigh risks and opportunities.

This does not mean abandoning the conviction. Even listening carefully, by questioning biases and adapting their understanding, leaders must keep a clear point of view. Cognitive empathy aims to strengthen judgment, not to replace it with endless consensus. Barton quotes the idea of ​​the old Revlon CEO, Jack Stahl, from a “formable point of view”, which is “reflected, intentional, based on a set of principles”, but open to the challenge. “This strengthens both the decision and the story you tell,” says Barton.

Crisis communication is the place where competence is vital. When the stakes and emotions are high, each message is examined. Cognitive empathy helps managers anticipate how employees, investors and customers will receive a situation and adapt the explanations so that each audience feels understood. “It’s not about telling different stories,” says Barton. “These things are all consistent and integrated, but you focus on different aspects depending on the audience.”

A certain fear of empathy slows down decisions, but Barton does not agree. “You will always have a point of view,” she says. “But you should be actively there, contest your own prejudices and really look for a deep contribution rather than having made this perspective alone.”

It is also a skill that everyone can develop. Barton recommends providing individual attention, asking survey questions, summoning groups to share vulnerabilities, strengthening confidence as confident or racing experiences to see how teams react. The method counts less than the state of mind. “There is not only one way to do cognitive empathy that anyone should say:” Well, that just doesn’t seem authentic, “she said.