Leadership with a different flavor to it is essential for steering organizations in uncertain times. It requires strong leadership skills and the ability to adapt to change to tide thru difficult waters. And it is not just the fittest who survive, but the most adaptive that survive longer.
Uncertainty breeds change and vice versa. And change is good if you, as a leader, make good use of the opportunity and create a positive difference in your organization.
Uncertainty is an opportunity to survival (although a difficult one), and that leaders who can bring about change are needed. In this post, I shall touch upon areas leaders can focus to help themselves achieve success!
Leadership style
There are many styles of leadership. Some styles are passive, while others can be called active. The passive leadership style is focused on avoiding risk. The directive style of leadership is the opposite. It relies on rewards, coercion and positional authority to reach goals. These leaders place more importance on their own knowledge than on the contributions of others.
Leadership styles must be modified over time. Impeccable leadership is essential for any organization or individual in today's uncertain world. Business leaders are particularly important because of the increasing challenges they face. It is important to continuously evaluate and adapt your style.
Communication
In times of uncertainty, leaders must communicate clearly with employees. Employees need to be informed about the company's activities, regardless of whether it is going through a crisis or restructuring a division. Employees may believe the worst if they are not kept informed. The company's credibility could be at risk.
It is normal to wait and see how communications go during difficult times. However, this is not a good idea. You can help people deal with uncertainty and make the most of it by presenting the facts early. This will reduce misinterpretation risk and increase trust.
People look to their leaders when they are in trouble. You must act as a calm force and a catalyst for stability within the organization.
Transparency in dealings is the key to trust-building. You must communicate truthfully and in a timely manner, but you must also be optimistic about the future.
Scenario-planning
Leaders of organizations in uncertain times can use scenario-planning to their advantage. Scenario-planning helps leaders make better decisions by making assumptions about the future. By creating different scenarios, a leader can envision different "realities" for a future business. Scenario- planning can be used to predict the potential future and help companies develop agility, alignment, and flexibility as well as mitigate risks.
Scenario-planning involves creating or many a times envisioning scenarios and stress-testing them. It is important to recognize biases and develop the skills necessary to conduct these exercises.
Embracing change
Leaders who embrace change and see it as an opportunity to improve processes and discover new markets, increase profitability and become more effective are the ones who succeed. They see change as a way to generate new ideas and innovations and turn uncertainty into a positive force. Organizations that embrace change positively experience higher productivity, greater engagement, and renewed pride.
Leaders must align their personal priorities and the company's strategy to embrace change. Leading change involves changing attitudes, behaviors, and how leaders communicate with employees, superiors, peers and their teams.
Leaders must also link their day to the overall initiative for change and exhibit their leadership style. This is especially true if you have taken over a new role. For a new boss, in the beginning it is perception that brings-in following. Only after employees work with you long enough do they get to know the real you- the individual.
Manage resistance
Leadership is also the ability to manage resistance. Overextended or inexperienced leaders are often reluctant to make tough decisions and take too long to implement them.
To ensure team buy-in and minimize resistance, changes must be carefully implemented. Here are some tips to manage resistance within organizations and get buy-in from employees: Open door policies are a great way to encourage employees asking questions. All employees should have access to communication channels and should have career opportunities available.
Understanding the elephant in the room: It's crucial to pay attention to the concerns of employees when managing change. These conversations can expose weaknesses in your plan and reveal the reasons for employee resistance. You can also build trust between employees and management by listening to their concerns and thereby increase their sense of contribution and value.
Related Reading:
Follow Shruti on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn
Categories: Strategy | Operations | Leadership
Keywords and Tags:
#operationalexcellence #strategicdecisionmaking #strategy #strategymanagement #businessresilience #continuousimprovement #managingforchange #managingforgrowth #leadingorganizationsthroughturbulentimes
Uncertainty breeds change and vice versa. And change is good if you, as a leader, make good use of the opportunity and create a positive difference in your organization.
Uncertainty is an opportunity to survival (although a difficult one), and that leaders who can bring about change are needed. In this post, I shall touch upon areas leaders can focus to help themselves achieve success!
Leadership style
There are many styles of leadership. Some styles are passive, while others can be called active. The passive leadership style is focused on avoiding risk. The directive style of leadership is the opposite. It relies on rewards, coercion and positional authority to reach goals. These leaders place more importance on their own knowledge than on the contributions of others.
Leadership styles must be modified over time. Impeccable leadership is essential for any organization or individual in today's uncertain world. Business leaders are particularly important because of the increasing challenges they face. It is important to continuously evaluate and adapt your style.
Communication
In times of uncertainty, leaders must communicate clearly with employees. Employees need to be informed about the company's activities, regardless of whether it is going through a crisis or restructuring a division. Employees may believe the worst if they are not kept informed. The company's credibility could be at risk.
It is normal to wait and see how communications go during difficult times. However, this is not a good idea. You can help people deal with uncertainty and make the most of it by presenting the facts early. This will reduce misinterpretation risk and increase trust.
People look to their leaders when they are in trouble. You must act as a calm force and a catalyst for stability within the organization.
Transparency in dealings is the key to trust-building. You must communicate truthfully and in a timely manner, but you must also be optimistic about the future.
Scenario-planning
Leaders of organizations in uncertain times can use scenario-planning to their advantage. Scenario-planning helps leaders make better decisions by making assumptions about the future. By creating different scenarios, a leader can envision different "realities" for a future business. Scenario- planning can be used to predict the potential future and help companies develop agility, alignment, and flexibility as well as mitigate risks.
Scenario-planning involves creating or many a times envisioning scenarios and stress-testing them. It is important to recognize biases and develop the skills necessary to conduct these exercises.
Embracing change
Leaders who embrace change and see it as an opportunity to improve processes and discover new markets, increase profitability and become more effective are the ones who succeed. They see change as a way to generate new ideas and innovations and turn uncertainty into a positive force. Organizations that embrace change positively experience higher productivity, greater engagement, and renewed pride.
Leaders must align their personal priorities and the company's strategy to embrace change. Leading change involves changing attitudes, behaviors, and how leaders communicate with employees, superiors, peers and their teams.
Leaders must also link their day to the overall initiative for change and exhibit their leadership style. This is especially true if you have taken over a new role. For a new boss, in the beginning it is perception that brings-in following. Only after employees work with you long enough do they get to know the real you- the individual.
Manage resistance
Leadership is also the ability to manage resistance. Overextended or inexperienced leaders are often reluctant to make tough decisions and take too long to implement them.
To ensure team buy-in and minimize resistance, changes must be carefully implemented. Here are some tips to manage resistance within organizations and get buy-in from employees: Open door policies are a great way to encourage employees asking questions. All employees should have access to communication channels and should have career opportunities available.
Understanding the elephant in the room: It's crucial to pay attention to the concerns of employees when managing change. These conversations can expose weaknesses in your plan and reveal the reasons for employee resistance. You can also build trust between employees and management by listening to their concerns and thereby increase their sense of contribution and value.
Related Reading:
- Up to speed with workflow- How to choose business process improvement methodology for your organization and measure the positive change.
- Kaizen for pharmaceutical, medical device and biotech industries
- How to cut costs strategically using Kaizen
- Streamline processes and workflows with Gemba Walk.
- Top Ten Strategic Decision-Making Tools for Operational Excellence
- Leading organizations through crisis.
Follow Shruti on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn
Categories: Strategy | Operations | Leadership
Keywords and Tags:
#operationalexcellence #strategicdecisionmaking #strategy #strategymanagement #businessresilience #continuousimprovement #managingforchange #managingforgrowth #leadingorganizationsthroughturbulentimes
