Professional paper
Leadership Development in Elderly Care Institutions: Empathy, Listening, Empowerment
Sanja Živković
orcid.org/0000-0002-2435-4394
; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Economics and Business, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Population aging will significantly impact the elderly care system in the European Union. While most discussions on this topic focus on potential technological solutions and the creation of programs intended for older persons, this paper highlights the importance of leadership development in elderly care institutions. The aim of this paper is to advance understanding and give suggestions on how certain leadership capabilities can be developed that could be considered key in the given context: empathy, listening, and empowerment. Empathy is a precondition for deep listening, while both empathy and listening are essential ingredients of empowerment. All three of these leadership capabilities could improve the well-being, engagement and retention of employees in elderly care institutions. They can also create transferable experiences and values, as employees could further integrate them into their work, consequently improving the wellbeing of older persons. Public policy makers can integrate this leadership development framework into capacity building programs, while management at all levels in both public and private elderly care institutions can use it for learning and development.
Keywords
leadership development; elderly care; empathy; listening; empowerment
Hrčak ID:
309555
URI
Publication date:
1.10.2023.
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