Life & Leadership

Leadership Refresh

  One of the more troublesome challenges of Leadership is - how do you renew and refresh your Leadership style? 

In the first place, it takes a long time, almost a lifetime, to get your leadership style in place. Renewing or refreshing it is as counter-intuitive as it is difficult. Most of us take a long time & effort combined with learning to develop our Leadership abilities - even contemplating a change is quite daunting.

I just went through a Refresher where I spent time with myself, did some introspection and did some rust cleaning of my own toolkit. This was at www.isabs.org . Did a week long program on Human Process Labs - December 15 - 20th at Agra, city of the Taj Mahal.

It was an amazing week, discovered a lot about myself.

My biggest insight this week was that true learning occurs when feedback forces a fundamental shift in the way I viewed myself. And boy, the process is bloody painful !

My biggest discovery was that my behaviors were intertwined with many aspects of me that I was unaware of. Till I understood that, I would not be able to move on and change my behavior, including leadership behavior.

It was fun !!

And just as I log off, here is wishing you all, a merry Christmas & a very happy new year.

Leadership in Uncertain times

No one seems to know what's going happen next, stressful? Yes.

However, if you are a leader and don't know what's going to happen next and  are expected to give directions to people; stressful ? You bet !!

Before we get to the leaders, what do you think happens to all of us when we face uncertainty? 

• Uncertainty causes fear
• The focus shifts from the Organization / community to Personal safety & security 
• Risk Aversion & low appetite for decisions unless things are clear 
• Stress 
• And most crucial, inability to see the big picture & a focus on smaller & smaller issues 

I think the two most critical ones are - Risk Aversion and Inability to see the big picture.

Most leaders see this. And this places added pressure on them to address the issue.

Given uncertain situations, Leaders tend to face different challenges

• Increased pressure to give decisions - when they are not sure themselves
• Clarify & communicate about the future 
• But, most crucial of all, they face their own Emotional leadership challenges of choosing what do they believe in.  

While all the 3 are vital in this, I would focus on the issue of Emotional Leadership.  This aspect is least understood, least articulated & arguably has maximum impact on Leadership performance.

  And this facet is the most powerful lever to understand the most critical & often hidden aspect of leadership. Emotional Leadership is the interplay of Emotional choice, Belief & Convictions and performance pressure. It is also quite simply, what happens in your mind when you have a difficult situation & are expected to do something about it.

Most leaders are expected to look strong, sure & decisive. Damn tough thing to do when you don't have a clue which way the world & your organization is headed. Welcome to the world of Emotional Leadership !!

Dealing with this issue is tough & there is no silver bullet. In my experience, a few things that work are:

• Talk to people about the issues that you are seeking to address
• If you have a core group of friends, advisers - seek their counsel & openly discuss your confusion & the lack of clear milestones around which to take decisions. This is best done with someone outside the immediate organization.
• Don't rush to decide - think & pause.  
• Articulate your point of view, talk a lot & tell people why you are taking the  decisions 
• Be flexible. 

However, the most important point is to realize, accept & e ok with the fact that you will not have all the answers. And its ok to be so.

  

 

Future trends in Talent Management - Generation Dynamics

  Talent mangement will suddenly raise its head like a Phoenix from the smouldering ashes of the Recession & we will all sit up and take notice. The lucky ones who are still hiring will cherry pick the best talent. Seems like a good time time to gaze into the crystal ball and look at the future of Talent Magement.

The first big trend we will see is the impact of Demographics &  Generation dynamics. 

Most of  the Talent processes have been designed by and for the Baby Boomer generation (Born between 1946 - 64) - a generation that has seen their parents struggle, they value  This generation arguably provides the fundamental pillar of Leadership across all Organizations and even countries. They have shaped the concepts, processes & practices of current mangement, including Talent mangement.

Cut to the current & future  entrants into the organization. The Gen Y, also called Gen M (Mobile?)?), are people born after 1980, in their 20s. They are currently the world’s largest consumer group & are shaping the world’s thinking in very a definite, subtle manner.

Their key characteristics –

Focused on results, not time …Hmmm, this is the time I begin thinking about Virtual offices, Flexi time & in fact, death of time as the unit of employment.  How are  our current organizations prepared to deal with this?

Freedom of Choice is a big deal. In fact, more Gen Ys prefer to be Self Employed than any other generation. If this were true, how will you attract the best talent to your team. They may be available for employment at all.

Work is secondary, its just one of the many priorities this generation manages to juggle with the same ease they juggle several phones & multiple remote controls. This is anathema to the current employment “system” that looks at full –time employment as the only effective way to manage talent. The Gen Y is likely to “employment” as a series of Projects rather than a series of annual objectives for appraisal. Now that’s something to manage, isn’t it.

Belonging, Values & Fun – may seem un-connected as concepts. However, they are quite seamless for the Gen Y. Affiliation to groups that individuals relate to, values like integrity, Green-ness .. And not to miss the fun piece

Given all these, very few organizations seem ready to manage these changes.

 

 

 

Future - Proof Leadership

 

So you think your Leadership style is contemporary, perhaps! Will it always remain so? 

Hmmm, now that's a different story.

In my view there are 5 fundamental Leadership traits that will help a Leader remain contemporary, whatever be the environment. 

Trust -  this is the most important trait that the Leader of the future will need to have. Its quite simple, how inclined will You  be to led by a person whom you do not trust fully. Greater the unpredictability of the future, more the need felt for trust. In fact, some of the debate in the US media is already throwing up this aspect.

 Quick Adaptability -  Situations, markets & needs will change. Ability of change with the times will always retain a premium. Most good leaders adapt to change effectively. My focus is on the Speed  of adaptability. This calls for confidence & a developed learning ability.

Seeing around the Bend  - The ability to sense what is about to happen has always been a big deal. However, in the future, trends and situations are likely to have a shorter life and change will always be lurking around unexpected bends. If you have this ability, you are going to be in great demand, by organizations & teams both.

Emotional Quorient (EQ) - The emerging genarations of Gen Ys & Gen M will place this Leadership on a premium, even beyond where its seen today, People will want more individuality than ever before. To be treated as part of a crowd will be anathema, to be treated as a person will be a minimum expectation. The emotional bandwidth to understand people,  their motivations and how to lead & inspire them will be a key trait the future Leader will need.

Execution - Some things do not change. The ability to get things done is and will remain an essential part of the Future Leader's toolkit