The Empathetic
Workplace

Be there for your people when they need you most.

The on-demand course that will give you the skills and resources to handle any crisis with compassion and confidence to leave you finally feeling ready to support your team through it all.

In recent years, we’ve faced Covid, a racial reckoning, political upheaval, economic uncertainty, environmental disaster, mass violence, global unrest, and more. These challenges have affected us in our homes, our communities, and they’ve affected us at work. Our workplaces are experiencing plummeting engagement, high turnover, and skyrocketing rates of burnout, anger, and depression.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

The way we support each other through hard times has a lasting effect on individual well-being, on trust between colleagues, and ultimately, on organizational success. The Empathetic Workplace online course will give you an easy-to-follow, research-based approach to compassionate conversations with those experiencing trauma and distress on the job, plus the resources and ongoing support to help you navigate any challenge with confidence and skill.

“Tremendous breadth of compassion and empathy. Wonderful soul and guidance.”

– Jeffrey

CNBC: “’Trauma is the air that we have been breathing in the 2020s,’ says Katharine Manning, an expert with more than 25 years of experience of handling distress in the workplace.”

What you’ll gain

KNOWLEDGE

An understanding of research on the prevalence and impact of trauma at work and why our responses to it matter.

SKILL BUILDING

You’ll see the impact of empathy at work in developing stronger teams and a healthier workforce.

SELF-CARE

The tools and practices to ensure that supporting others doesn’t leave you feeling burnout yourself.

What You’ll Receive

ON DEMAND LEARNING

Through videos, research, case studies, exercises, and reflection, you’ll be guided through an understanding of the impact of trauma and distress at work and be given the tools to ensure that you’re ready to face any challenge with compassion and skill.

Digital Resources

You’ll receive online tools to help you retain and apply the course lessons, including a workbook for recording your own notes and reflections, downloadable resources and infographics, and templates you can use with your team to share the knowledge and build a culture of empathy for everyone.

The Empathetic Workplace Is perfect FOR YOU if YOU…

An understanding of research on the prevalence and impact of trauma at work and why our responses to it matter.

Support communities that are facing hardship, trauma, and distress, and want to make sure you do it with compassion (while also preserving your own mental health)

Want to ensure that you can face the challenges that come, no matter what they are and when they arrive

Understand that empathetic leadership is the key to a stronger organization, more productive teams, and a healthier workforce

I’m Katharine Manning

I’ve worked with people in trauma and distress for more than 25 years, including 15 years at the U.S. Department of Justice, where I advised on supporting victims of terrorism, child exploitation, human trafficking, and more. Now with my company, Blackbird, I do training and consulting for organizations on supporting their employees, clients, and the communities they serve through hard times. My work has been featured in the Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Newsweek, CNBC, Business Insider, and CEO World, and I teach at American University and in the Master’s in Trauma-Informed Leadership Program at Dominican University.

I know how hard it can be to support someone who’s struggling, and I also know how to do it in a way that provides genuine support without exhausting ourselves. In this session, I’ll teach you how.

"Katharine’s training on The Empathetic Workplace was both comprehensive and easy to follow. She provided a solid overview of the impact of trauma and drilled down into not only how to best support survivors, but also how to cope, internally, with the information they share and make the conversation productive, compassionate and empowering. I can’t think of a workplace that would not benefit from this training. It highlights the importance of listening, then gives specific steps to becoming a better active listener.”

– Kristin

GRAB YOURS NOW

Receive everything for The Empathetic Workplace in a one-time payment!

$247

*Any applicable sales tax applied at checkout

What You’ll Leave with

An easy-to-follow, research-based approach to compassionate conversations with those experiencing trauma and distress in the workplace
Sample scenarios so you can see how the approach works in practice
Exercises to ensure your understanding
Online resources to deepen your learning on the topics you choose
Reflection questions to help you apply the concepts to your own life and work
Conversation scripts, infographics, and resources to use with your team, so that you can build a culture of compassion

“Leadership is not about being in charge, it is about taking care of people in your charge.”– Simon Sinek

“Super helpful and well explained in a concise and effective way.”

– Stephanie

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is the course?

The course is designed to be taken at your own pace and with the time and energy you have to devote to it. You can speed through it and be finished in an hour. Or, you can linger on the reflection questions, explore the outside resources, and spend more time on the exercises. Either way, you will come away with tools, skills, and resources to better support your colleagues, clients, and the communities you serve, and to take care of yourself as you do so.

Is the course the same content as the book?

The course teaches the five-step LASER technique that discussed in the book, but has additional exercises, reflection questions, and updated research and materials.

Is this teaching me to be my colleagues' therapist?

The course definitely isn’t teaching you to be your colleagues’ therapist. You should NOT be your colleagues’ therapist! It’s more like mental health first aid skills–you’re the one on the scene, you see the problem, you provide some immediate support, and then you refer them on to the experts. And, for those of you who already feel like your colleagues’ therapist, it’ll give you a few easy tools and scripts for boundary setting, to help you get back a bit more of your time and energy.

Do people's personal problems even belong in the workplace?

They’re already there. You’re already working with people who are experiencing mental and physical health challenges, addiction and alcoholism, family violence and sexual assault, racism and bias, and more, and those who are supporting loved ones through those same challenges. These issues are already having an impact on productivity, absenteeism, and turnover. Ignoring them doesn’t make them go away. But if we can develop the skills to be able to talk about these challenges in a productive, healthy, and supportive way, we can build strong bonds of trust, address issues before they become catastrophic, and create a culture of compassion that will see us through the challenges of today and those that are coming in the future.

Can I get a refund on the course?

No. Don’t do this halfway. If you’re not sure if the course will help you to be the kind of leader and colleague you want to be, I’d urge you not to purchase the course until you know that it’s the right fit for you. Spend some time here reading articles and getting to know my work. If the financial commitment feels like too much for you right now, check out my book first. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at kmanning@blackbird-dc.com. Be sure you’re ready for this before you begin, so that you’ll have the commitment to see it through and apply what you learn to help build a new world at work.

GRAB YOURS NOW

Receive everything for The Empathetic Workplace in a one-time payment!

$247

*Any applicable sales tax applied at checkout