An employee is diagnosed with cancer or loses a family member unexpectedly. An earthquake destroys an entire section of a city, leaving hundreds dead, injured, or homeless. At times like these, managerial handbooks fail us. After all, leaders can't eliminate personal suffering, nor can they ask employees who are dealing with these crises to check their emotions at the door. But compassionate leadership can facilitate personal as well as organizational healing. Based on research the authors conducted at the University of Michigan and the University of British Columbia's CompassionLab, this article describes what leaders can do to foster organizational compassion in times of trauma. They recount real-world examples, including a story of personal tragedy at Newsweek, natural disasters that affected Macy's and Malden Mills, and the events of September 11, 2001. The authors say compassionate leaders uniformly provide two things: a "context for meaning"--creating an environment in which people can freely express and discuss how they feel--and a "context for action"--creating an environment in which those who experience or witness pain can find ways to alleviate their own and others' suffering.

Nearly one in ten professionals now works part-time. But all too often, part-time work creates as many problems as it solves. At best, many part-timers work more hours than they intended. At worst, they see their importance to their organizations dwindle. Two generations have wrestled with such arrangements, and today some part-time professionals have found ways to overcome the challenges, with shining results. Drawing on two years of research investigating part-time engineers, financial analysts, IT specialists, and consultants, the authors present five strategies that successful part-timers use to make their unique position work for themselves and their companies. To begin with, successful part-time professionals take pains to make their work-life priorities, their schedules, and their plans for the future transparent to the organization. Second, they broadcast the business case for their arrangement, being careful to demonstrate that the arrangement has not disrupted the business and may even have a positive impact. Third, they establish routines to protect their time at work and rituals to protect their time at home. Fourth, they cultivate champions in senior management who protect them from skeptics and advocate for their arrangements up and down the ranks. And last, they remind their colleagues that, despite their part-time status, they're still major players in the organization who cannot be ignored.

You've watched them comfort colleagues, defuse tense situations, and take the heat from tough bosses. You've seen them step in to ease the pain during layoffs and change programs. Who are they? The authors call them toxic handlers--managers who voluntarily shoulder the sadness, frustration, bitterness, and anger of others so that high-quality work continues to get done. Toxic handlers are not new. They are probably as old as organizations themselves. But there has never been a systematic study of the role they play in business. In this article, the authors introduce the role of toxic handlers, explaining what they do and why. Managing the pain of others is hard work. Toxic handlers save organizations from self-destructing, but they often pay a high price--emotionally, professionally, and sometimes physically. Some toxic handlers experience burnout; others suffer far worse consequences, such as ulcers and heart attacks. The authors contend that these unsung corporate heroes have strategic importance in today's business environment. Effective pain management can--and does--contribute to the bottom line. No company can afford to let talented employees burn out. Nor can it afford to have a reputation as an unhappy place to work. The authors offer practical advice for managers and organizations about how to support toxic handlers--before a crisis strikes. The role of toxic handler needs to be given the attention it deserves for everyone's benefit, because the health of employees is a key element in the long-term competitiveness of companies and of society.