How to Build Compassionate Organizations: Awakening Compassion at Work
A Six-Week Online Advanced Learning Journey
March 25 - April 29, 2024
We invite you to join us for a unique deep dive into designing organizations and communities so that they are more likely to awaken compassion. In the book Awakening Compassion at Work, Monica Worline and Jane Dutton articulated a “social architecture approach” to compassion in organizations, combining the wisdom of personal and relational practice with designing elements of an organization that call forth greater compassion. Studying organizations that vary in their collective competence reveals that compassion in organizations does not come about simply as an aggregation of individual intention and action. If that were the case, when more compassionate people join an organization it would become a more compassionate workplace. Sadly, however, it is often organizations with compassionate missions and filled with highly compassionate people, that thoroughly fail to respond to the suffering of their members. What is the missing element for transformation?
This course will help you see the collective organizing of compassion and understand and change the elements that foster the collective organizing of compassion. This approach ensures that awakening compassion is built into the organization’s foundation, extending impact beyond the scope of individual compassion training . We will build on your knowledge of individual compassion practice and compassionate leadership, taking your skill and know-how to a new level as you learn to see and shape compassion as an emergent quality of an organization that flows from a predictable amalgam of flexible structures. Blending theoretical knowledge with practical, hands-on work, we will become designers of organizations that facilitate compassion in our communities.
A look inside the advanced learning journey module by module.
The program is offered on six consecutive Mondays, March 25 - April 29; 11:00am-12:30pm ET / 15:00-16:30 UTC
Module 1
Welcome to the Social Architecture of Compassion: An Introduction and Launch Pad
Join an energizing community of changemakers striving to realize a more compassionate world and prepare to launch a personal exploration of the social architecture of an organization or community that matters to you. We will discover how an organization’s social architecture is formed by its unique amalgam of four types of flexible social structures and the surprising way that this allows us to design for both stability and change at the same time.
Module 2
Designing an Ecology of Roles to Awaken Compassion
Roles are implicit and explicit structures that define people’s zones of responsibility in a social system, shaping what actions we think are appropriate and expected. Systems that awaken more compassion weave the alleviation of distress into the entire ecology of roles, making compassion everyone's responsibility.
Module 3
Activating Networks That Cascade Compassion
Organizations can be conceptualized as social networks that tie people together in webs of formal and informal affiliation. Research on social networks shows us that both the structure and the quality of these networks is a significant factor in characterizing our collective life. As designers, we need to understand how to structure and activate these ties between people to make it more likely that they cascade compassion across the system when they detect the presence of suffering.
Module 4
Shifting Routines to Scale Responsiveness to Suffering
Organizations rely on recurrent, recognizable patterns of action to get things done. While most of us participate in these patterns without giving them much conscious thought, organizational routines are a compassion architect’s best friend, because small shifts in these recurrent activities can rapidly and reliably scale competent compassionate action.
Module 5
Shaping Cultures That Carry Generous Interpretations
Most of us have thought about organizational culture and compassion, but we often approach culture as if it is mechanistic and predictable. In reality, organizational culture is the deep structure of an organic whole that responds in nonlinear, unpredictable ways to our mechanistic and overly simplistic attempts at change. We will explore how we can shape cultures by honoring their intrinsic vitality, beauty, and complexity and how this stance helps us introduce artifacts and stories that become part of the invisible source of meaning making related to the human condition and that colors the organization’s interpretations of events as well as what constitutes appropriate or valued responses to those events.
Module 6
Standing at the Threshold: An Ending and a New Beginning
Learning to see organizations as architectures that shape compassion opens the door to seeing ourselves as architects who are capable of the durable design and the delicate artistry that awakens compassion for all.
What will you learn?
You may very well wonder: If building individual-level compassion skills isn’t a guarantee of systemic change, what can we do to realize more compassionate organizations? This advanced course will show you how to build on a base of individual compassion skills in combination with a practical theory that helps you think and act more strategically. If you are already a compassion changemaker, this course will help you deepen your analysis of your current system.
We will learn to identify factors that enable collective compassion and leverage them to amplify compassion across a system. We will also learn to diagnose factors that inhibit compassion and design small shifts in the social architecture to unlock compassionate action. This course is for everyone who cares about designing and architecting systems where the inevitable distress of organizational life is met with the compassion it deserves.
Program Overview
Six weeks of live online interactive sessions
Live sessions meet for 90 minutes
Mondays, March 25 - April 29; 11:00am-12:30pm ET / 15:00-16:30 UTC
Small breakout groups with peers for deeper exploration and connection
Focus on experiential learning through practices and exercises
Resources to explore and learn more between sessions
Lifetime access to recorded sessions and materials
All course materials and additional resources will be posted online. You are encouraged to attend as many live sessions as possible, but you will also reap the benefits of the course if you listen to the recording.
Who should take this course?
Leaders and changemakers who have encountered frustration with the results of existing change efforts in their organizations and want to take their efforts to a new level of efficacy.
People who are looking for new horizons of compassionate change and want to engage in hands-on application to re-design organizations and awaken compassion in their communities.
Teams and groups interested in creating common language, skills, and practices to accelerate compassion growth within their organization.
Graduates of Compassionate Leadership Certification Training, Applied Compassion Training, Compassion Cultivation Training, Mindful Self-Compassion, Mindful Leadership, and Search Inside Yourself who want to deepen their knowledge and practical skill at realizing change related to compassion in organizations or communities.
Lead Faculty
Monica C. Worline, PhD
Monica C. Worline, PhD, serves as Lead Faculty for How to Build Compassionate Organizations: Awakening Compassion at Work, as well as our Compassionate Leadership Teacher Training. She is one of the leading voices bringing compassionate practices into organizations, having co-authored the foundational book Awakening Compassion at Work: The Quiet Power that Elevates People and Organizations. Monica is the Faculty Director of the Center for Positive Organizations, Ross School of Business, University of Michigan. She is the founder and CEO of EnlivenWork, an organization that partners with thought leaders in the field to help organizations tap into courageous thinking, compassionate leadership, and the curiosity to bring their best work to life. She is also a collaborating research scientist at Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education and Executive Director of CompassionLab, the world’s leading research collaboratory focused on compassion in the workplace.
Stay Connected With Compassionate Leadership Training Alumni Around the World
You will be invited to join our global community of over 500 leaders from 50 countries who have already been through our training programs. We gather monthly with alumni to stand together for change and to stay inspired and resourced. The work is hard, and we need each other to keep our commitment strong. Our alumni community is a unique and powerful resource to ensure success on your compassionate leadership journey.
Program Tuition and Team Discounts
Program tuition is $995 USD. There is a $695 tuition tier for nonprofit organizations.
Groups and teams of three or more each receive an additional 10% discount. Please reach out to cfclprograms@gmail.com for more details and if you would like to request an invoice to your organization.
Limited scholarships are available if financial support is needed. You can find the scholarship application here.
About the Center for Compassionate Leadership
The nonprofit Center for Compassionate Leadership convenes and supports a global community of transformational leaders dedicated to building a new world of connection, safety, belonging, equity, and justice. Together we are courageously pioneering solutions to the great challenges of our time through the lens of compassion, love, and flourishing.
Our Certification Training Programs, Compassionate Leadership Teacher Training, and advanced courses are one pillar of the Center’s efforts to spread compassion throughout the world. The Center also facilitates customized in-person and online compassionate leadership training for a broad range of institutions, including The Carter Center, BP, Cornell University, Task Force for Global Health, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors, to name a few.
The momentum of our individual and collective action is how we change ourselves, organizations, systems, and the larger whole. Never underestimate even the smallest act of compassion – its ripples are a powerful and essential contribution to the larger river of all life.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is the format of the online course?
Each session includes live discussion and training with a focus on experiential learning through practices and exercises, as well as small group breakouts with your peers.
All course materials and additional resources will be posted online and available for lifelong access. You are encouraged to attend as many live sessions as possible, but session recordings will be available in case you miss a live session.
How many hours of work are required to complete the course? Is there homework?
There are six modules 90 minutes each, for a total of 9 hours of group class time. There is no formal homework; however there will be application guides for you to apply what you are learning in your organization and optional reflection questions that prompt you to contemplate on your own should you choose to go deeper.
Will I have access to lead faculty?
Yes. Each session is designed so that lead faculty will have opportunities to engage in dialogue around participant questions.
What technology is required to access the course?
Live sessions will be conducted on the Zoom platform. You will need a free subscription to Zoom to connect to the course. Zoom may be accessed through computers, tablets, or any mobile phone. If you need further information on Zoom, please visit www.zoom.us to sign up for free.
Will I receive a certificate upon completing this program?
Yes, you will receive a Certificate of Completion from the Center for Compassionate Leadership. Certificates will be delivered electronically, so that they can be shared on LinkedIn or other digital channels.
Do I have life-long access to the course material?
Yes, you will be able to access the materials and recordings at any time in the future.
What are the fees for the program?
The regular course investment is $995 USD. Full registration and payment details can be found on the registration page.
What payment methods are accepted for the program?
Payment may be made directly online with a major credit card or via PayPal or an invoice can be sent directly to your organization.
Are scholarships available?
Yes. We strive to make the course and community available to all individuals and organizations dedicated to compassionate leadership. We offer a limited number of partial and full scholarships to highly qualified candidates. If you would like to be considered for a scholarship, please complete this application.
What is covered in the program fee? Are there any additional costs?
The program fee covers the entire training, access to the live Zoom sessions, and lifetime access to session recordings, program materials, and the ongoing alumni community. There are no additional fees.
Can my organization pay for the program?
Yes. We can invoice your organization directly or provide you with an invoice to submit.
Are group rates available?
Yes. Some organizations send several team members together to build an internal base of compassionate leadership community and support. We are pleased to offer group rates if three or more employees at your organization want to participate in the same cohort. Please contact cfclprograms@gmail.com for details.
Can I participate from anywhere in the world?
Yes, indeed. The program was developed for global leaders around the world. Sessions are delivered online and are available from anywhere Zoom can be accessed with an internet connection or telephone line.
Still curious or have additional program questions?
We'd love to hear from you. Email us at cfclprograms@gmail.com.