New leadership philosophies are taking shape
A constant driver of my work with NextGen Leadership is the search for further insights into what, at its core, good leadership is. In pursuit of this quest, I am interested in questions such as: Can good leadership be learned or taught? What is the value of self-leadership and self-reflection on the executive floor? How does leadership work in the virtual space? How are topics such as new work, learning culture and innovation brought to life and modeled in organizations? Or quite simply, how does it feel to sit across from a real leader?
The desire to rethink leadership is growing
Having had the privilege of intensively supporting various leaders in transformation projects over the past few months, I personally conclude that while trailblazers such as Simon Sinek, Brené Brown or Frédéric Laloux still have a big head start on the rest of the field in many regards, more and more organizations and the leaders within them are beginning to take a serious look at newer leadership philosophies. The appetite for change in this area is real.
A good time for leadership development
Even though the desire to organize leadership differently has been developing for some time in many companies, there is no doubt the Covid-19 crisis has massively accelerated discussions around New Work, New Learning and, strongly linked to this, New Leadership. So it seems like a good time for leadership development. This is especially true because the restriction to purely virtual interactions has made it very clear to us what is important in building trust and conveying security: humanity, authenticity and compassion. These are all elements that we would describe as central leadership qualities, and not just since the coronavirus crisis.
Experiencing (leadership) insecurity in the virtual space
For many leaders, the absence of direct face-to-face communication for months as a result of pandemic measures was accompanied by an experience of insecurity in the virtual space. How can you lead your people in the virtual space at all? How do you ensure that the messages you intend are received correctly on the other side?
Self-reflection becomes a decisive driver of change
My observation is that this experience of uncertainty has led to increased self-reflection, which has even prompted some leaders to fundamentally rethink their previous leadership philosophy. I have seen leaders go on to actively change leadership behavior in their organization.
Trust before control
The fact that many leaders have been forced by the Covid-19 crisis to trust their employees more has been a wake-up call for some. Those who previously relied on the adage “trust is good, control is better” realized that employees can also work effectively and efficiently if they are not constantly controlled by their superiors. It is now crucial that leadership development builds on this experience while it is fresh – and does not wait until some leaders fall back into old patterns. This danger also still exists in principle – despite all self-reflection.
