Empathy, CIO CEO relationship, and digital transformation

This study investigates how one personality trait of CIOs and CEOs, i.e., their empathy, affects CIOCEO relationships and then the outcomes of firms' ongoing digital transformation. We hypothesize that the cognitive and emotional empathy of CIOs and CEOs can establish mutual understanding and trust, which in turn improve digital transformation. We empirically validate these hypotheses based on a survey of 105 pairs of matched CIOs and CEOs. The findings reveal asymmetric effects: CIOs' empathy improves CIOCEO relationships and then digital transformation, but CEOs' empathy does not show significant effects. We then discuss our findings and implications to theory and practice.