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Compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech-driven workforce

Mini Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2025.

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Other Authors: Nel, Karen
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2026
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access_status_str Open Access
author2 Nel, Karen
author_browse Nel, Karen
author_facet Nel, Karen
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2025 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Mini Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2025.
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institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:37:33.114Z
license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2026
publishDateRange 2026
publishDateSort 2026
publisher University of Pretoria
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spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/109216 Compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech-driven workforce Nel, Karen ichelp@gibs.co.za Zaman, Saamiah UCTD Compassionate leadership Generational changes Employee well-being Tech-driven workspaces Mini Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2025. The nature of work, as we know, has evolved through generational change and intensified digital transformation in the workplace. Renewed interest in leadership models and capabilities that prioritise employee well-being, empathy and trust are in the firing line. Compassionate Leaders (CL) has been identified as a relational and humanistic approach to leadership as a positive alternative to traditional, performance-driven leadership models. While identified as crucial to the modern work era, CL remains scarcely researched, especially within African and emerging technological markets. This study examines how CL is experienced, perceived, and practised in rapidly changing tech-driven environments within South Africa. Specific focus was placed on the cultural contexts, such as the Ubuntu Philosophy and its influence on leadership culture, and its tie-in with CL. The study was guided by an interpretivist, qualitative approach and data were collected through semi-structured interviews, which were manually analysed and sorted thematically. The findings revealed that compassion in leadership manifests through modelling of behaviour, relational awareness, and emotional support. The findings also highlight that providing compassion is constrained by organisational structures such as performance demands, systemic inequality and technostressors. The study makes a positive contribution to the localisation of Compassionate Leadership Theory (CLT) through culturally practised compassion in South African workplaces. It extends the scholarly literature of compassion and organisational sustainability by confirming the need for balance in the follow-through of enacted compassion and organisational demands and efficiency. Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) MBA Unrestricted Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) SDG-08: Decent work and economic growth 2026-03-23T09:42:17Z 2026-03-23T09:42:17Z 2026-05-05 2025 Mini Dissertation * A2025 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/109216 en © 2025 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle UCTD
Compassionate leadership
Generational changes
Employee well-being
Tech-driven workspaces
Compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech-driven workforce
title Compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech-driven workforce
title_full Compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech-driven workforce
title_fullStr Compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech-driven workforce
title_full_unstemmed Compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech-driven workforce
title_short Compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech-driven workforce
title_sort compassionate leadership is an essential leadership style for a rapidly changing tech driven workforce
topic UCTD
Compassionate leadership
Generational changes
Employee well-being
Tech-driven workspaces
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/109216