New Businessolver Research Finds CEOs and CHROs Expect Empathy to Cost Them Authority

Data shows 59% of CEOs and 51% of CHROs expect their decisions to be challenged when they lead with empathy

DENVER, Nov. 3, 2026 — The two executives most responsible for shaping workplace culture expect to pay a price for leading with empathy. In new Businessolver research, 59% of CEOs and 51% of CHROs (or Chief People Officers) say their decisions will be challenged if they lead with empathy. Yet 99% of CEOs and 88% of CHROs believe empathy contributes to business results.

The findings come from Part 2 of Businessolver's 2026 State of Workplace Empathy C-Suite Special Report, "Inside America's C-suite: What happens when executives don't feel safe?" The study of 1,000 employees and 300 C-suite executives, including CEOs, CFOs, CIOs/CTOs, and CHROs/CPOs, is part of the company's 11th annual study on empathy at work.

Executives name the CEO as the leader with the most influence over a culture of empathy. But 43% of CEOs fear they will lose respect if they demonstrate empathy at work, and 61% say empathy is hard to demonstrate consistently in their day-to-day work.

"Executives have overwhelmingly accepted the business case for empathy, but data shows many still don't feel safe acting on it," said Marcy Klipfel, chief engagement officer at Businessolver. "It's a shocking trend that so many chief people leaders feel constrained in their ability to lead with the empathy employees need. When the CEO and CHRO brace for pushback every time they lead with empathy, that tension impacts how decisions are made. And ultimately, employees feel it long before it shows up in turnover or declining productivity."

The report also surfaced patterns that complicate how boards and HR leaders think about culture at the top:

• Empathy feels riskiest where it's needed most. 78% of executives in toxic cultures fear losing respect for showing empathy, compared with 14% in non-toxic cultures, a 64-point gap.
• Executives and employees disagree about who sets the tone for empathy. Just 2% of executives say non-manager employees have the most impact on workplace empathy, compared with 32% of employees.
• Millennial executives report the most friction putting empathy into practice. 34% say empathy gets in the way of their personal business goals, more than twice the rate of Gen X executives (16%).
• Employees are 1.7X more likely than executives to report a mental health issue in the past year (55% vs. 33%). Among those affected, 54% of employees report depression, compared with 12% of executives.

The report details how each C-suite role experiences coworker intimidation and mental health strain differently. Taken together, Businessolver's C-suite reports suggest business performance can look strong even as trust and psychological safety erode below the surface.

Download the full report at https://businessolver.com/resources/2026-state-of-workplace-empathy-c-suite-special-report-p2/

SOURCE Businessolver