Page 70 - Cyber Defense eMagazine June 2020 Edition

have budget and time constraints, knowledge gaps, competing priorities, even personal life challenges
we know nothing about. Naturally, we know our field better than they do—that is why they come to us in
the first place.

In my field of cybersecurity, victims of breaches are often blamed (very visibly so, as large breaches can
impact many thousands of people and end up in the news). As experts, however, we realize what they
are up against: even with heavy financial investments, it is nearly impossible to mitigate every risk across
the IT landscape, especially given their competing fiscal priorities. They have to make tough choices. In
other fields, clients may be similarly challenged or lacking fundamental knowledge to address the basics
needed to avert issues, both large and small.

But, even if we know and understand some degree of client neglect may have been the source of their
own woes, we must resist judgement and focus instead on helping them and caring about their current
problem at hand. When companies come to us, they are often afraid—for their jobs, health, finances,
business solvency, etc. What they need from their services professionals is knowledgeable assistance—
and a healthy dose of empathy.

Building a Culture of Caring: It Starts from the Top

To be successful in creating a “culture of caring” for clients, it has to be driven from the leadership on
down and cultivated throughout the employee base. It must become part of the company DNA, ingrained
in how we hire, train, lead, communicate, and reinforce through the company culture. As leaders, we
must ensure our employees across the business remember that “blaming” is not a company value, and
that caring about people—both clients and coworkers—is. Even if it weren’t a simple human value to
demonstrate caring, it certainly is a fiscal one: clients will return to companies that demonstrate
compassion and shun those that make them feel judged for the problems for which they seek assistance.

A Step-by-Step Approach

Below are some concrete steps you can take to build a more compassionate culture:

Lead by Example: Be a caring leader. By demonstrating that the company cares about their employees’
overall wellbeing—beyond just their revenue-generating potential—you set an example of how you
expect employees to treat each other. This includes soliciting feedback; demonstrating humility (we don’t
have all the answers and should be willing to listen to better ideas); understanding that employees have
personal lives; getting to know your employees on a personal level.

Hire the Right People: Go beyond the resume to find people that fit your desired culture of caring. Hiring
the smartest people won’t yield the best results if they are arrogant, disruptive, or harmful to employee
dynamics and service orientation. Don’t be afraid to let the wrong people go if issues cannot be addressed
with an adequate investment in coaching.

Empathetic Coaching: Few employees enter the workplace without areas for improvement, and leaders
aren’t exempt, either. When you see opportunities for employees to improve in their interactions with

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