As the pace of change in our business environment has accelerated, organisations have become increasingly more dependant on the adaptive capabilities of their teams.
The disruption caused by COVID has only accelerated this which has big implications on the way we lead, collaborate and work together.
Looking at this through the lens of leadership and management, we can see that outdated models like “Command and Control” leadership which were already dying, are now dead due to the pandemic.
How we collaborate and communicate within our teams has changed so much, there is just too much complexity, change and uncertainty to centralise all decision making to a sole leader or manager and expect them to have all the answers.
So, what does a leader or manager need to do today to help teams to perform at a high level? How have things changed and what are the skills we need to cultivate as leaders and managers in the new world of work?
At Capability Group we work across many different types of organisations and have developed some insights that support our Leadership Development Offerings.
Some of the shifts in focus in leadership that are occurring are:
• Leadership even at the very top, isn’t just about driving change, it’s about being the change. Its about working on yourself first and modelling the way
• Leadership is about recognising that you don’t have all the answers, and that the people closest to the problem usually have the best ideas about how to solve them.
• Leadership is about being humble and demonstrating compassion, empathy, and care – it’s about considering the team’s workloads, health, family and wellbeing more than ever.
• Leadership is about encouraging leadership from everyone in the organisation to help accelerate the team’s ability to learn and adapt. Unlocking leadership and innovation everywhere
• Leadership is about understanding that great ideas can come from anywhere and anyone in the organisation regardless of status or position in the organisation. Leaders can help remove barriers and controls that limit independent decision making to support this.
The only thing that is constant is change – this was said by Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher over 2500 years ago. We are naturally adaptive beings with the right support and environment. It is a time of great potential for leaders and organisations. How is leadership enabling your teams?
Contact Ben Tootill to understand more about the impact our Leadership Development Programmes and Building Cohesive Team offerings are having to meet the above needs.