In this cutting-edge book, award-winning communications and organizational strategist Marie Miyashiro provides insight into the fundamental importance of human "empathic" connections in workplace systems and the significant role they play on the vitality and productivity of organizations. The book details a proven and repeatable method for developing and practicing empathy as a workplace skill. The Empathy Factor–Your Competitive Advantage for Personal, Team, and Business Success takes Marshall Rosenberg's work developing Compassionate Communication into the business community by introducing Integrated Clarity®—a framework you can use to understand and effectively meet the critical needs of your organization without compromising those of your employees, team members or customers.

The Empathy Factor helps you create more choice, power and productivity for yourself, your organization, and customers with whom you engage. How? By surfacing and energizing that most often overlooked third dimension—the human dimension of connection. A connection based on empathy. There are three distinct levels of empathic connection that are constantly at play in our workplace: our relationship to our own internal state, our relationships with co-workers and collaborators —and the relationships that connect us with our end consumers. In many situations, the quality of these connections is not meeting critical human needs such as trust, respect, autonomy, understanding and meaning. Since our entire global economy is shifting to one of complex interdependent relationships, the value of connections and empathy in the workplace continues to increase. The Empathy Factor offers proof that building a more compassionate, empathic workplace is precisely the path to greater productivity, and consequently, profits. More important, the book shows today's managers how they can build teams and organizations where empathy is the core driver of their success; with engaged people working productively in workplaces where inspired people and profits meet.

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Sample A Few Pages From The Empathy Factor

"Empathy has always been a core part of Marie Miyashiro. Now she has transformed that valued human relations quality and skillfully turned it into a powerful communications force for the business community. The Empathy Factor will help thoughtful business people add substance and dimension to relationships within the workforce—colleagues and customers. Breakthrough thinking from cover to cover that will lead to more meaningful discourse and heightened impact."

—JAMES B. HAYES, Former Publisher, FORTUNE Magazine

"The Empathy Factor provides great insight into almost diametrically opposed business needs, personal and corporate. Not only does it explain why they exist, but provides sound techniques to achieve synergy between the two—in turn, making the employee and business more productive. This should be required reading for any manager or supervisor."

—BILL MOORE, Senior Vice President, Ipitek Corporation; Former Vice President and General Manager, Ortel Corporation; Former Corporate Marketing Manager, Hewlett-Packard

"Fabulous! With this book, Marie has made several very important contributions to the body of work concerning effective leaders. She makes a clear connection between the vitality of organizations and the ability of its leaders to harness the vast potential energy generated by engaging human beings in the landscape of their feelings. Equally important, she has taken the widely heralded virtue of empathy and made it very accessible with numerous pragmatic strategies and tools. A must-read for any emerging leader!"

—ULRICH NETTESHEIM, Managing Partner, Passages Consulting; Lecturer at Haas School of Business at University of California Berkeley; and Founder of Umanity

"Marie Miyashiro's comprehensive discussion of empathy in the workplace resonates with integrity. As I read The Empathy Factor, the Integrated Clarity model of organizational needs came to life. I saw immediate applications for anyone who works as a consultant to organizations, whether for-profit, nonprofit, or social enterprise. Marie embodies the capacity to relate to ourselves with compassion as we create possibilities for alternate futures to emerge."

—CATHERINE W. BROOKER, M.A., Founder and Principal Consultant, Social Futures Group; Former Senior Organization Development Consultant at Sun Microsystems

"I came away from The Empathy Factor with new insights, new skills, and a much stronger appreciation of the crucial importance of 'connecting.' And I agree: the payoffs of putting this value into practice are huge! Now, those payoffs—capacity to innovate, resilience under pressure, and overall organizational effectiveness—are within much easier reach, thanks to the wisdom provided in this wonderful book."

—SAM KANER, Ph.D., Author, Consultant, Expert in Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration; Founder of the San Francisco-based international consulting firm, Community AtWork

"Marie makes her point and encourages her reader's belief not only in the 'theory' of empathy but also the 'reality' that one can achieve. Business climates can truly benefit from her expertise and The Empathy Factor is a good read! I encourage anyone who wants to open their mind to a better way of communicating to open a copy of this book."

—ROBIN D. LANE, Vice President of the Board of Directors, Arizona Women's Golf Association; Former Major Account Sales Representative, Sun Microsystems

"Those of us seeking to humanize the workplace through empathy and needs-consciousness have largely been sourcing the work through exploration and discovery. Now, The Empathy Factor provides an easy-to-read and comprehensive guide to connect with both the head and the heart of this work. Marie frames it within her wealth of knowledge and applied experience of organization development leaders. I am particularly excited at Marie's articulation of needs at the organizational level, which are essential to expand this work into the workplace.  This book goes to the top of the suggested reading list for my clients!"

—GREGG KENDRICK, Founder/CEO, Basileia LLC; Former CEO, Republic Research Training Centers, Inc.; CNVC Certified Trainer

"The Empathy Factor is at once accessible and far-reaching in its implications. In page after page filled with real-life examples and tips, Marie Miyashiro makes the case that empathy is entirely learnable, eminently practical, and core and central to an organization's capacity to achieve its mission. Far from a 'soft' distraction, the needs-awareness allows everyone to zoom in on what matters most, the source of focus and efficiency in achieving business and personal goals. I recommend this book highly for anyone who wants to gain a handle on how to make organizations adapt to the rapidly changing constraints of our times."

—MIKI KASHTAN, Ph.D., Co-Founder, Lead Facilitator and Trainer, Bay Area Nonviolent Communication

"Organizations have needs just as people in organizations have needs—an amazingly refreshing perspective! Marie has beautifully illustrated how the power of empathy can humanize the workplace and help transform our world."

—SYLVIA HASKVITZ, M.A., R.D., CNVC Certified Trainer, Communication Consultant and author, Eat by Choice, Not by Habit

"The Empathy Factor is an energizing statement of the fundamental importance of human connection in ALL areas of life. Its clarion call to connect first is a refreshing and liberating reminder for all organizations, companies, and even teachers. The methods and ideas in this book will be very useful tools for optimizing student-teacher interactions."

—PAUL WEBER, Ph.D., Visiting Assistant Professor of Physics, University of Puget Sound

Marie co-authored a synopsis of the Integrated Clarity® framework with Nonviolent (or Compassionate) Communication developer Marshall Rosenberg, Ph.D. It appears as a chapter in the second edition of The Change Handbook—The Definitive Resource on Today's Best Methods for Engaging Whole Systems (Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc., 2007), "Integrated Clarity: Energizing How We Talk and What We Talk About In Organizations."

Premier Book Event
The Empathy Factor in Workplaces Where People Thrive
NVC Academy Telecourse
Free Introductory Session – October 11, 2011; 12 – 2 p.m. (PDT)

If you work in or with an organization as a manager, employee, consultant or volunteer and want to learn how to create more productivity, personal meaning and effectiveness, join this free introductory session by telephone. In this session, you'll learn practical tips and an uncommon approach for proven results. You'll also learn if sessions 2 – 4 are a fit for your needs.

Information and registration at www.nvctraining.com
Introductory Skill Level Session 1
Introductory Skill Level Sessions 2 - 4
Public Event

The Empathy Factor Book Signing and Fundraiser for BayNVC
Scheduled for Early 2012
Oakland, California
Information at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Public Event

A full-day workshop based on The Empathy Factor business book. Learn what the organizational research says about the role and power of empathy to increase leadership, team effectiveness and customer connections. Practice and leave with a Personal Action Plan for increasing your competitive advantage through the empathy factor. For managers, team leaders, organizational consultants and trainers, team members. Attend as a team for maximum results.

Information and registration at empathyfactoratwork.eventbrite.com
Public Event

Inner Practice/Outer Practice – The Empathy Factor for Organizational Consultants and Trainers
Montreal, Canada
Friday, October 28, 2011

An intimate, hands-on, interactive workshop for organizational consultants and trainers who want to elevate their practice and revenues by adding value to clients through both compassion and productivity. A rare opportunity to deconstruct an award-winning, real-world empathy-based contract, discuss personal and contractual money beliefs, bond with kindred colleagues and leave with a Personal Action Plan for increasing your sustainability by adding more value in the work world. Based on the new business book The Empathy Factor – Your Competitive Advantage for Personal, Team and Business Success.

Information and registration at www.eventbrite.com/event/2173595282
Public Event

The Empathy Factor – Author Party and Book Signing
Tucson, Arizona
Friday, November 11, 2011; 4 – 7 p.m.
Private Event

The Empathy Factor – Book Signing with The Center for Collaborative Communication
January 2012
New York City, New York
Information at www.collaborative-communication.org
Public Event

Keynote Speaker
Association for Partners of Public Lands Annual Convention
Las Vegas, Nevada
March 4 – 8, 2012
Information at www.appl.org
Private Event