Do compassionate firms outperform? The role of organizational learning

Abstract

PurposeBased on a new management paradigm rooted on care and compassion, this study explores the consequences of compassion at work on organizational learning and firm performance.Design/methodology/approachStructural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to analyze the research model by using data from two different samples.FindingsResults confirm that compassion increases firm performance through organizational learning capability; however, compassion do not enhances directly firm performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe study findings indicate that when compassion is propagated among organizational members, organizations are better able to learn so they obtain a competitive advantage that is difficult to imitate and leads to higher firm performance.Originality/valueThis study takes a step forward on literature by providing empirical evidence for a promising area of management research such is compassion in organizations.