The “bear minimum” fosters good leadership principles in tough times
There is strong evidence that empathetic, yet tough, leadership achieves better long-term results than strict authoritarianism. Adhering to these principles is not so hard when things are going smoothly, but it’s much more challenging when there’s constant disruption, uncertainty, and stress. Building on our thought-provoking and widely praised “Management by Bear, Not Fear” report, this Viewpoint explains how leaders can maintain an empathetic leadership style in times of high stress.
In late 2024, Arthur D. Little (ADL) published the report “Management by Bear, Not Fear!,” which provided a set of evidence-based principles for a leadership style that embraces ambidexterity across toughness and empathy. We made a purposeful departure from convention by invoking the qualities of, among others, Paddington Bear and Teddy Roosevelt to illustrate the model. The report was widely read and highly praised by clients and business journalists alike — after all, there should be room for humor even in the stuffy world of management theory.
The report explored four essential qualities for effective leadership, each involving being ambidextrous across complementary attributes:
Leaders with these attributes can be human without being overly permissive, firm without being intimidating, and decisive without being authoritarian. In our report, we provided compelling evidence that an empathetic workplace environment — where individuals feel empowered and valued, and where innovation is fueled by mutual learning across diverse perspectives — ultimately outperforms autocratic organizations driven by power and fear. And we said that fun and enjoyment, when natural and not forced, are good for the workplace.
So far, so good. But some of our executive clients, although they love the model, pointed out how hard it is to keep to these principles all the time, especially during periods of turmoil and high stress. Today, these conditions occur more frequently than ever. We live in a more fractured world with converging crises around resources, climate, society, and geopolitics. Events and their impacts are rapidly amplified and sometimes distorted through ubiquitous digital connectivity. Floods of information and noise saturate communication channels. Exponentially developing technology is upending assumptions about how businesses can, and should, operate. Periods of turmoil are becoming the rule rather than the exception.
Behavioral research confirms the difficulty of maintaining empathetic leadership in a high-stress environment. For example, a 2023 study by Jonas P. Nitschke and Jennifer A. Bartz showed that acute stress interferes with affective empathy and emotional contagion — meaning people under stress may be less responsive to others’ emotional states. Other studies have shown that high stress levels alter cognitive processes (especially information processing, risk evaluation, and problem identification) and reduce emotional self-regulation, patience, and perspective-taking. Fear, a common emotion for leaders in difficult times, narrows attention, suppresses initiative, and discourages responsibility — precisely when action is most needed.
Lotta Gustafsson, MD, PhD, a dermatology specialist who earned her medical degree at Karolinska Institutet and conducted research at Lund University, Harvard University, the National Institutes of Health, and Groote Schuur Hospital in South Africa, explains:
“Stress is more than a state of mind; it also imposes a physiological tax burden. Chronic stress triggers a cascade of cortisol — a hormone that, while essential for survival, disrupts almost every bodily process, manifesting as systemic inflammation that can worsen skin conditions and contribute to sleep disturbance, pain, and fatigue. High cortisol levels have been shown to shrink the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for clear priorities and decisive action. Interestingly, team members’ nervous systems actually coregulate with the leader’s through mirror neurons, the primary mechanism for emotional contagion. So, when a leader is able to stay calm, this actively lowers the collective cortisol of the whole team.”
Avonova, a leading Nordic occupational health consultancy, has collected extensive data on how stress affects employees. Alborz Danielsson, MD, Senior Adviser at Avonova, board member of the Swedish Association of Occupational Health & Safety, and former Chair of the Swedish Association of Occupational & Environmental Medicine within the Swedish Medical Association, states:
“Chronic stress, both work-related and private, can quietly erode focus, energy, and engagement. Financial strain, sleep disruption, health concerns, and relational stress often travel with employees into the workplace, limiting presence and sustaining ‘presenteeism’ — that is, being physically present but unengaged and unproductive.”
To get ideas on possible solutions, it’s helpful to look outside the conventional business world. Take the military, where leaders make life-and-death decisions under uncertainty, time pressure, and moral/ethical complexity. Here, clarity of rules, discipline, and authority are the main tools used to cope with stress, but compassion is also essential for unit cohesion and morale. Emergency service operatives have to act in fast-moving, high-risk situations with incomplete information. In their case, staying calm often means emotionally detaching, with empathy frequently being expressed after the action, not during.
Another valuable example comes from the maritime sector, where the captain of the ship is responsible not just for the ship and its operation, but also for the safety and well-being of the crew. In the 1990s, ADL was engaged by the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) to develop a practical guide (“Leading for Safety”) for leaders and senior officers in the maritime industry to improve their leadership skills for ensuring safety.
This guidance, we’re proud to say, is still in active use some 30 years later and offers valuable lessons for business leaders on maintaining effective, empathetic leadership in times of stress.
Drawing on MCA guidance and the experience of professionals in other high-stress fields, we prepared a summary of the key priorities for business leaders seeking to sustain effective management under acute pressure, highlighting four areas of focus.
This is a prerequisite for successful leadership in troubled times. Having a clear sense of purpose for the business, a well-articulated direction of travel (a polestar), and a set of firm underlying values and ethics lets leaders maintain stability, stay resilient, and focus on what’s most important (see Figure 1).
Like the rules and discipline of military organizations, business organizations with this firm foundation are more likely to continue to function effectively in turbulent conditions.
In today’s polarized environment, empathy itself is sometimes questioned — with some arguing that excessive or poorly bounded compassion may dilute performance standards or strategic focus. In its most extreme critique, this risk is described as “suicidal empathy”: compassion applied without regard for long-term viability, accountability, or mission integrity. Whether or not one agrees with that framing, it highlights a real leadership tension. Empathy must be anchored in purpose. Historical and anthropological perspectives suggest that organized societies have always depended on the capacity to care beyond immediate self-interest — yet effective institutions also depend on standards, consequences, and direction. “Empathetic leadership under pressure” is therefore not softness; it is disciplined humanity. When aligned with clear values and firm expectations, empathy strengthens resilience. When detached from them, it can unintentionally undermine it.
In times of crisis, people rely even more on their leaders to provide a steady, reassuring presence. Of course, all leaders want to stay calm in a crisis — why wouldn’t you? Some people’s personalities are by nature more volatile than others, but anyone can train themselves to improve. There’s nothing wrong with feeling fearful, but when not adequately controlled, fear can be amplified across the team, especially when leaders start to thump the table and shout at their staff. Learning to control emotions through techniques such as cognitive reappraisal (stepping back and looking at a situation from a different perspective), structured pausing, and controlled breathing can help. Aside from physiological and behavioral tools, preparedness is the real key to remaining calm (see Figure 2). Preparedness builds confidence — not only in yourself, but also in your team’s capabilities, which is equally important. If you can have genuine trust in your team’s abilities, it’s much more likely they will trust and respect you as a leader, reinforcing your ability to remain composed during a crisis.
Acting decisively is core business for any good leader. It’s especially important in critical situations that demand rapid action to minimize damage or exploit fleeting opportunities. During crises, there are often uncertainties, ambiguities, or incomplete data, which can make decision-making harder (see Figure 3). A good starting point is to work on your skills in “sensemaking” (i.e., how to build a “good enough” picture of a situation). Sensemaking can be improved by being more systematic about how you view an unfolding situation, including framing the problem clearly, recognizing facts versus assumptions versus unknowns, and setting out priorities in terms of things that need to be done now/within a few hours/within a few days. A second area to work on is communication and openness within your team. Upward communication — so you hear bad news quickly — needs to be actively encouraged so you can take the right action promptly, as well as learn from mistakes through feedback. Gustafsson emphasizes:
“Leaders need constructive feedback and teamwork to stay grounded. When uncertainty is met with shared, steady leadership, stress becomes manageable. People want to contribute — and they want to be seen and led; sustainable leadership is the balance between the two.”
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