On the plane, I am that The guy sitting next to you who asks 100 questions before we get off. “Chuck, would he leave those people alone?” my wife always says, no use.

You see, I just can't help myself. I care about people and take an interest in them, a philosophy I have applied to raising a BUsINEss.

I am a scientist by training and former CEO of a publicly traded technology company with over 26,000 employees. But I have to share something: I really believe that for every leader, the real driver of success is not necessarily technical expertise or management knowledge. It is love and care. Ultimately, this is what enables their people to navigate challenges and take risks. It also stops amazing talent from walking out the door.

Connected: This leadership technique is the secret to optimal team performance

What am I talking about when I talk about love?

I love each and every one of my people. It's a strong word to throw around in business, I know. There are obviously many kinds of love, so let me explain what I mean in this context.

I'm talking about the kind of self-denial I saw him growing up in humble circumstances in Providence, Rhode Island. My family and friends had limited resources but endless generosity. They didn't think twice about sharing all they had and finding ways to serve others.

Being in love like this has shaped who I am today. We always hear about self-made person, but this is a myth. No matter how successful they become, everyone needs others to lift them up.

The love I share with my employees also comes from my faith. No matter what your background may be, all faiths share a notion of love at their core. It is a deep appreciation and SENSITIVE to people's challenges, along with a willingness to connect with them. Think of it as the strong chemical bond that holds atoms together. By taking that step, I make myself part of someone else's life and make it part of mine.

It is often overlooked business leaders, but the resulting affinity is a competitive advantage. Here's what I've learned about how to lead with love, both personally and globally.

To show your people love, get personal

On an individual level, conveying love is not rocket science. I just show people that I care.

How? I ask questions. I listen. I empathize. By putting myself in someone else's shoes, I begin to understand what it is all about. I love getting to the core of how they feel, think and dream and find out what keeps them up at night.

People know when their boss cares, and they respond accordingly. Less than 10% of middle and senior managers are superior listeners and communicators, employee survey found. However, nine out of 10 Highly engaged employees feel heard, compared to only a third of those with low levels engagement levels.

It doesn't matter who that person is or what they do. I travel a lot for work, so I often chat with the Uber drivers who pick me up at the airport. This isn't polite chat – I'm genuinely interested in hearing about their lives and what makes them tick.

The same applies to the executives of a company we are merging with. Leading 20 successful PURCHASESI can't think of a better onboarding strategy than connecting with the people who are joining us.

For me, showing love also means challenging team members because I care about them gROWTH. This may seem counterintuitive, but in my mind, truly loving someone means being there to push them to new heights and catch them when they fall. Often, people do not believe that they can achieve something. But if you encourage them to dream bigger and support them along the way, they find new courage, competence and confidence.

Harnessing the power of love at scale

For business leaders, the real test is projecting that love to hundreds or thousands of employees.

I wish I had some tricks to share or tips on their power mass communication. Listen, I didn't even have a social media account until earlier this year. And in many cases I don't even speak the same language as the people I lead.

Both of these things have made it difficult for me to communicate, for example, with our employees who work in China, where everyone uses WeChat.

But if you love your people, there's no substitute for meeting them where they are. That is why I have made more than 150 trips to China. To reassure the team there during Covid, I visited our offices around the country, giving a similar speech wherever I went. Showing up in person – and delivering a consistent message – helped build a foundation of FAITH.

I do the same for our other employees spread across the globe. Over the years, I have stopped by many of our locations. After each visit, I hate to leave because it feels like I'm leaving my family.

Having a clear value system it's another way to convey love on the scale. Some people dismiss the company's values ​​as soft noisy words, but I disagree. In fact, I supported the development of our “I CARE” values: integrity, collaboration, accountability, respect and enthusiasm. There's no mistaking what we stand for—and as far as I can tell, few people in the company have trouble remembering that acronym.

Leading with love also means embracing the idea that you are a servant of your people. To show my team that I'm here to serve, I get out and interact with them instead of hiding behind a desk in a corner office.

For any business, taking this approach has its rewards. Servant leadership increases employee engagement by building trust, research shows. On the other hand, the most engaged employees perform 20% better and are almost 90% less likely to quit smoking.

Connected: Recruitment and retention strategies vary by generation – but they have this one thing in common

How love puts people at the center of business

When you lead with the kind of love I've been talking about, something beautiful happens.

To explain, I will invoke one of the two main forces in the universe. (I am a scientist, after all.) Centripetal force holds an object moving in a circle looking for the center. Think of the earth's gravitational pull, which keeps the moon in orbit. Love acts as that centripetal force in any organization. It enables everyone to feel centered – pulled together and protected by the team around them.

This is a great source of courage. As people juggle their work and family life, they find it easier to cope with everyday challenges. A loving workplace is also a safe environment for experimentation and risk-taking. Knowing that within reason, they don't have to worry about making mistakes, people can fail quickly and share lessons learned.

After all, for companies, the bond I call love is a trade secret that no competitor can duplicate. It creates a culture that attracts people, making the business a magnet for talent.

In today's job market, this is a huge plus. Almost nine out of 10 Industry executives say that recruiting and preserving the talent are the main obstacles.

For leaders, showing love is the most powerful way I know to build a strong, caring business. By going where their people are, mentally and physically, they can make real connections. Which reminds me – I have a flight to catch.