Leadership in the absence of clear answers
Leadership in the absence of clear answers
In our ever-changing business landscape with increasing tech disruption, we require our leaders to become something quite extraordinary. Individuals who can navigate volatility, harness resilience, foster agility and integrate the paradoxes we are facing. What is needed of leaders, to be successful in all this uncertainty?
With accelerating disruption, every company is having to address the profound changes wrought by digitisation. Data, algorithms, and artificial intelligence are transforming forecasting, decision-making, and the workplace landscape. Companies are forced to adapt quickly, often having to completely re-think their business models, restructure their organisation, review their entire ways of working and adopt design thinking approaches.
Senior executives, with responsibility for the success or failure of corporate transformations, feel the burden particularly heavy in the absence of clear answers and layers of uncertainty. With the stress of the circumstances, our survival instincts kick in, causing many to falter, falling back into old habits, making spur-of-the-moment decisions, and acting on gut instinct. We fight, flee or freeze. Disruptive times call for leaders with inner agility; leaders who can defy their natural instincts in many cases and not only seek out stability but push their organisations to venture further and explore the unknown to seize new opportunities.
Based on a review of the research on sustainable leadership, we at Alumni have formulated a leadership model that encompasses four over-arching key competencies. While representing separate and unique facets of Sustainable Leadership, each of the four competencies are connected and interact in ways where strengths in one area also add value to others. Developing these key competencies can help strengthen the mindset needed for effective leadership during transformative times.
4 competencies beneficial to strengthen your leadership and develop inner agility
Humanity
With a genuine will to do good for others, leaders who display this competency act ethically and empathically, have a genuine interest in the well-being of others, and can see the bigger picture (organisational, societal, environmental, long-term). Behaviours such as a focus on humanitarian values and ethical behaviours, interest and investment in others’ well-being and growth is core to developing humanity. Leading through empowering others and often prioritising the needs of others before self are other behaviours that speak to this competency.
Authentic Connection
Being able to authentically engage others is key to developing this competency. Leaders who can formulate and communicate a vision that is clear and connects with people emotionally; daring to be vulnerable and show their true selves, matching their words with their actions and are able to have truthful conversations with others, act with authenticity.
Agile Mind
Key to this leadership competency is understanding and adapting. Leaders who display this competency can analyse complex information, identify key priorities and make good decisions in ambiguous and volatile circumstances. They possess the emotional and cognitive ability to be open to new ways of doing things.
Drive for Growth
In embracing growth of both people and business, leaders with this competency are more prone to dare to fail. Leaders who display this competency prioritise the development of people, themselves as well as others. They challenge and encourage action and an experimental mindset to drive the business forward dynamically.
Leaders who possess and develop these four competencies are likely to have developed a strong sense of inner agility. They will be better equipped to understand the impact and opportunities of our disruptive world. These leaders are uniquely equipped to thrive amidst uncertainties.
Incorporating these distinctive qualities into your leadership methodology empowers you to effectively position your organisations not only for survival but for thriving within our dynamic world. By nurturing collaborative endeavours, embracing forward-looking mindsets, and championing diversity, you can cultivate a milieu of innovation and resilience.
Alumni Global
We are experts in the field of Leadership Assessment and Development. We have used our years’ of experience to develop processes to identify leaders with these competencies and have the tools to assess them.
We are happy to help if you are looking to create a solid succession plan through the selection or development of sustainable leaders that will boost the success of your organisation into the future.
If we can help you with any area of leadership acquisition or development please do reach out.
Contact us
Perspectives
Times of Uncertainty - Nurture Collaboration
Perspectives
Setting leaders up for success
Make it stand out
What skills do we need to unleash the benefits AI?