Leadership: Why Return On Compassion Is The New ROI
Sometimes you hear something from a business leader that is truly a big idea. This happened to me recently in a conversation with Dr. Omer Shahab Khan, Founder & CEO of an Australian company called OSAN Ability that provides in-home aged care services and support for people with disabilities. Khan told me about a new ROI he calls “return on compassion” that prioritizes dignity, empathy, and human outcomes over conventional business metrics.
This comes at a time when most businesses are focused on transactional efficiency, margins, and short-term shareholder value. That focus is intensifying as leaders are embracing “all in AI” that holds the promise of more operational efficiency at a lower cost. In many ways, AI represents the antithesis of Khan’s approach to return on compassion.
A scientist and engineer by training, Khan worked for global tech giants IBM, HP, and Cisco and led what he described as a privileged professional life. “At the same time since I was a child, my family was involved in serving people in community and charity work,” said Khan. “ I’ve also got people in my family who are older and disabled and I found that the companies who are supporting them were only focusing on margins and profits but the dignity and care was missing.”
In 2017, Khan walked away from a secure corporate position and founded OSAN Ability, a company focused on compassion, not just investment, and margins, and profits. “People in the industry appreciated the idea but told me that you can’t run a business on compassion,” said Khan. “And I told them that we can run a business based on compassion and make money at the same time.” Within two years, the company was profitable, expanding across Australia, and proving that compassion could be a strategic advantage.
As Maria Ross wrote in an article for Forbes earlier this month, “Your sustainable advantage is a culture where people – especially your managers – feel respected, informed, and equipped to adapt. That’s not “being nice.” That’s how to fortify your team to win.” That’s backed up by research that shows how organizations can benefit by including compassion in their business strategies.
Higher Employee Retention: 79% of workers agreed that empathetic leadership significantly decreases turnover according to research by the Thunderbird School of Global Management. “Employees find they have a purpose in life,” said Khan. “If leaders instill compassion in their staff, they’ve got the best staff, and they will stay forever.”
Greater Employee Engagement & Productivity: In compassionate environments, 76% of employees report being highly engaged, compared to only 32% in less compassionate settings and employees lower emotional exhaustion and 41% less absenteeism reported Hollingsworth Consulting.
Improved Innovation and Creativity: 61% of employees with highly empathetic leaders reported their workplace as innovative, versus only 13% of those with less empathetic leaders according to a global study by Catalyst.
Higher Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty: Companies embedding compassion see gains in customer loyalty because clients “give back when they feel cared for and valued” according to a study about compassion and business performance.
Better Financial Performance: Companies that embed compassion into their business have been found to outperform financially, with stronger revenue growth and profitability. At OSAN Ability compassionate practices have helped to drive rapid expansion across Australia.
Beyond Khan’s experience at OSAN Ability, there are other leaders that have been successful by prioritizing results that matter most to people including quality of life, dignity in aging, and a sense of belonging at work.
At LinkedIn, Jeff Weiner embedded “managing compassionately” as a leadership principle, building a culture of trust that allowed the company to scale quickly. At Barry-Wehmiller, CEO Bob Chapman’s “Truly Human Leadership” meant avoiding layoffs during the 2008 recession—an act of compassion that preserved morale and ultimately drove record earnings. Starbucks has demonstrated the value of investing in staff well-being, achieving a turnover rate less than half the industry average while cultivating one of the most loyal customer bases in retail.
Khan shared a story that captures the essence of return on compassion. A man who had lost his legs and fingers, was isolated and suicidal, reached out for help. The team at OSAN Ability asked him what would be most helpful and heard that the man wanted to grow a garden. OSAN Ability stepped in and built wheelchair-accessible garden beds which enabled him to rediscover purpose in growing vegetables. His suicidal thoughts disappeared and he became one of the company’s most vocal ambassadors, bringing new clients through word-of-mouth. As Khan describes it examples like this demonstrate that investing in compassion creates ripples of impact that extend far beyond a balance sheet.
For employees at OSAN Ability, compassion is embedded in their experience from day one. “For the first two or three days we only talk about compassion, dignity, respect and the human side of caregiving,” said Khan. “Once these things are properly trained, then we talk about how to support elderly people.” This approach is also improving the bottom line. Families often choose OSAN Ability because word-of-mouth spreads that the company “goes the extra mile.” In fact, OSAN spends far less on marketing than its competitors, because compassion is driving growth.
OSAN Ability has already expanded to 15 franchises in Australia and has ambitions to enter Asia-Pacific markets such as India, and eventually North America. However, Khan insists that growth will not come at the expense of values. “Many believe compassion is a soft skill, a luxury. I say it’s the ultimate strategic advantage,” he said.
Khan believes that the companies that thrive in the next decade will be those that can balance the efficiency of technology with the humanity of compassion. “What makes me and my staff happiest is being able to serve people and help improve their lives,’ said Khan. “That makes us much happier than the money we’ve made in this business.”
The data and stories illustrate that return on compassion goes beyond Khan’s personal beliefs and experience in the aged care industry. Return on compassion is also a framework that can redefine ROI in any industry where leadership is based on efficient delivery of products and services and the ways that employees and customers’ lives are being changed for the better.