What Nine to Five teaches us about compassionate leadership

"I am your employee and, as such, I expect to be treated equally, with a little dignity and a little respect.”  

Every now and then, a movie reaches through the screen and leaves us with something lasting. Sometimes it’s a lesson about friendship. Sometimes it’s about resilience. Other times, like in the 1980 classic Nine to Five, it’s about the power of compassionate leadership.  

It’s easy for leaders to get lost in the chase for efficiency and numbers. After all, results keep the lights on. But in focusing only on metrics, businesses often overlook a proven driver of performance: the wellbeing of their people.  

In Nine to Five, Violet, Judy, and Doralee (played by Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, and Dolly Parton) work in a toxic office under Franklin Hart Jr. (the late Dabney Coleman). Hart’s obsession with rules and order led to a suffocating work environment. Employees at Consolidated seem chained to their desks, weighed down by an almost omnipresent gloom. No flowers on desks, no new ideas or suggestions, no room for employees to simply breathe, just grey walls and grey feelings.   

This method of management left employees uninspired, and working on autopilot, present in body, but not in spirit. And yes, fine, the girls were getting the job done at the end of the day, but never at the capacity that they were capable of, if just given the care and compassion they sought from their boss.   

It’s easy to dismiss this as an imaginative movie, to let the dramatisation of the employees push back on management and water down the weight of the message that writer Patricia Resnick had penned. But within the theatrics, the 1980 movie - inspired by the 9to5 Movement by a group of Boston secretaries who organised fair treatment and equal pay in the workplace in the 1970s – holds a lesson for businesses everywhere.    

Your business is better off when you care for your employees.   

THE HIDDEN PRICE OF THIS OVERSIGHT  

Rigid, compassionless leadership isn’t just bad for morale, it’s expensive, £51 billion a year expensive. According to a 2024 report by Deloitte, that’s exactly how much businesses in the UK lose to mental health.   

In this figure lies sick leave, reduced productivity, and the cost of replacing staff due to poor retention rates. All of which can be alleviated through compassion. In fact, Deloitte go on to report that for every £1 spent on supporting the mental health and wellbeing of employees, employers see an average return of £4.70 in increased productivity.  

HOW TO BE A COMPASSIONATE LEADER   

Compassionate leadership goes beyond empathy. It’s about creating an environment where employees feel valued, respected, and genuinely cared for. That means listening, understanding, and supporting people in ways that make them feel safe and respected.  

You don’t need to know every detail about an employee’s personal life. Their coffee order, favourite movie, or family tree isn’t what matters. What does matter is recognising the person behind the job title and taking the time to understand their individual needs and doing something about it.  

When Violet, Judy, and Doralee stepped in to run Consolidated while Hart was…let’s say preoccupied…they exemplified what it means to lead with compassion. They listened to employees’ concerns, created a more open and supportive workplace, and helped colleagues find the right support when they needed it. The result wasn’t just better morale, but also stronger performance and healthier profit margins.   

At its core, compassionate leadership is about recognising and responding to human needs in the workplace. Like any meaningful relationship, it works best when both sides meet each other halfway. Because when leaders show up for their employees, employees are far more likely to show up for them.   

At Ripple & Co., we help managers put this into practice. Through our manager training, we break down stigma around mental ill health and give leaders the tools they need to protect the wellbeing of their teams and themselves.  

Take the first step toward better workplace mental health today. Get in touch with us to learn more.