Faculty: Laura Madden

• Rich Klindworth

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Spring break 2026 was a whirlwind for Dr. Laura Madden. The East Carolina University College of Business associate professor of management caught up on grading and Faculty 180, which is a reporting system for tenure promotion and performance reviews.

"You're welcome to make up a better story, and I'll back you up on it," Madden said. "Rescuing feral kittens, maybe? Trying to get presale tickets for Metallica's residency at the Sphere in Vegas? Make me sound cool!"

This is a snippet into Madden's personality, and why students enjoy her classes. She has a tub of fidget toys for students to de-stress. She will also sit crisscross-applesauce on a table in the front of the room and chat with her students on a wide variety of topics before class begins. There are lots of laughs.

"Learning takes root better when it starts with a smile, and people are more curious when they're comfortable and having fun," Madden said.

If you think this sounds Pollyanna, it does - but it's also backed by research. Madden's research explores how organizations care for people. Madden examines how leaders respond to both employee and stakeholder needs and how those responses influence stakeholder well-being and long-term organizational outcomes.

"Organizational compassion is becoming more important, not less," Madden said. "As work continues to change because of increased uncertainty and technological shifts that blur boundaries, organizations will be judged not only by what they produce, but by how they treat people along the way."

Madden teaches business strategy classes, but says her specialty is the capstone strategy class COB students take before they graduate. Care is essential to her research, and she said she works to help her students understand how organizations really function and how people can thrive at work.

"Sometimes we think of organizations as emotionless machines, but people's personal lives don't get checked at the door, and they carry their pain in with them," Madden said.

Noticing the different ways in which people are treated at work when they are experiencing hardship sparked Madden's interest in organizational compassion. She said some organizations rally around their people in meaningful ways, while others add to their stress.

"Research gives me a way to help organizations construct a better world for their stakeholders," Madden said. "I hope that my research changes the way people see organizations' roles in society and people's roles in their organization."

The stress can be debilitating. Madden said organizations can take care of their employees by recognizing that personal suffering is inevitable in the workplace. The key is to design systems to help with compassionate responses. She said this will benefit the employee who is suffering as well as the organization. She added that leaders at all levels of an organization can be compassionate - executives, managers, team leaders, coaches, administrators and professors.

"Compassion starts small and relies on authentic connections between people," Madden said. "So, organizations and leaders that listen, talk, laugh and celebrate with their colleagues create workplaces that can also respond compassionately when the need arises."

One of the benefits of teaching college students - including those about to graduate - is that many have already been in the workforce in one form or another. Madden said she and her students share their varied work experiences and stories of how organizations really work.

"Sometimes we're flabbergasted; sometimes entertained; sometimes delighted," Madden said. "My favorite reactions happen when the stories remind us what kind of managers and leaders we want to be."

Which is why Madden works to be authentic with her students. She said she does this research because work impacts just about every part of our lives, and when organizations respond well or poorly to people's needs, the consequences can be lasting.

"I've seen how meaningful support can ease hardship, and how its absence can make difficult situations worse," Madden said.

Being nice is the ultimate theme of her research, Madden said. She shared three simple takeaways from her research that anyone can do in any organization.

1. Be nice. You never know what other people are going through.
2. Being nice pays dividends for the world beyond those you personally experience or see it.
3. Organizations can make being nice to each other easier.

Madden feels the ripple effects of her research and leading by example can drive change for the benefit of all.

"I believe that we make a difference in immeasurable ways through everyone we interact with," Madden said. "I cling to the hope that I make a positive difference for our students, and through them, the world they're building."