The document discusses reviving empathy between employers and employees. It notes that a rift has grown between producers and consumers, as well as leaders and employees. Empathy and understanding other people's needs can lead to interesting solutions and meeting needs in unexpected ways can surprise and delight. The author advocates giving employees agency and a voice in their work lives so their needs can be better expressed and met. This recalls how most things were made throughout human history.

1. Connecting Employers
and Employees:
Reviving the
Phenomenon of Empathy
John Nash
University of Kentucky
john.nash@uky.edu
iwinRoundtable dLab.uky.edu
May 9, 2012

2. laboratory on design
thinking
in education
innovation,
creativity and design

3. surprise & delight

8. a service company
that happens
to sell shoes

9. a service organization
that happens
to educate kids

10. a service organization
that happens
to [do what you do]

12. creating something that
meets your partner’s needs

13. create a utensil to help your
partner eat their favorite food
use the play-doh to
rapidly prototype the utensil
you may make more than
one version of the utensil
you may interview your partner
first, throughout, or not at all

14. reporting out
who was your partner?
what’s their favorite food?
what did you make?

15. why do we
do this exercise?

17. 1.
understanding other
people can lead to
interesting solutions
Dev Patnaik

18. 2.
this is how most things
got made for most of
human history
Dev Patnaik

21. a rift has grown
between producers
and consumers
Dev Patnaik

22. a rift can grow
between leaders and
employees

23. “It’s much harder to
succeed when you create
things for people you don’t
know and whose lives seem
alien to your own.”
-Dev Patnaik

24. turn to your
neighbor

25. discuss two things you
could have done to
build a better utensil
for your partner

26. empathy

27. need finding

28. agency is the capacity of
a person to act in a world.

29. employee agency is the
capacity of an employee to have
a voice in their work life.

30. employees who have a
voice are better able to
express their needs

31. having your needs met
where you don’t expect it
surprises and delights

32. turn to your
neighbor

33. what is an example of
employer empathy you
can share with the
group?

34. Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, Stanford University

35. Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, Stanford University

36. design thinking
Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, Stanford University

37. dLab.uky.edu
john.nash@uky.edu
twitter: @jnash