As there is a new perspective in every field due to many reasons such as the developing world, Covid-19, generational differences, and economic uncertainties, the concept and content of leadership also changes. So, how can leaders be successful in this new era in business life?
"CEOs need keep an open mind so they can adapt to a rapidly changing world and need to bring an abundant dose of emotional intelligence to the job."
These words of Indra Nooye, who worked at PepsiCo for 24 years, are like a brief summary of leadership in the new era.
Leaders should be able to adapt to the ever-changing conditions in a short time; they should always question themselves and the environment, and be open to innovations and opinions, by succeeding in leaving their titles aside when appropriate. While factors such as education, experience, age were sufficient to be respected and accepted by leadership in the past, it seems that these alone are not enough for new generations. It seems that the type of leadership that is authoritarian, ordered, oppressive, closed to outside ideas, and where ideas are evaluated by title, is quite a thing of the past.
It is very important for leaders to understand the expectations of their team, to know them, to direct their competencies correctly and to pave the way by presenting a concrete target for the future. In addition, considering the expectations of the employees, leaders who can train new leaders instead of being afraid of competition will make a big difference.
According to research, modern leaders should be transparent, honest and good communicators. In the past, leaders who communicate over distances are being replaced by reachable leaders. Leaders should be able to achieve an atmosphere of trust and honesty by sharing their feelings and concerns from time to time. Leaders who share information transparently make employees feel important, facilitate meeting a common goal, and achieve a stronger team spirit.
Peter Drucker said, “The leader of the past was a person who knew how to tell. The leader of the future will be a person who knows how to ask.” is a key point of view for the new era leadership. Today and in the past, leaders are expected to have a high level of eloquence. But now, leaders who only talk and express long opinions on every subject are replaced by leaders who are able to ask questions and listen. It is observed that performance and efficiency increase with the correct answers given to the correct questions asked in order to see the problem and produce the solution. Learning the techniques of asking questions is of great importance for modern leaders.
Although it will take time and even painful to move away from the traditional mentality and adapt to modern leadership, it is a necessity for today's business world to keep up with modern perspectives. Companies that support traditional leadership, on the other hand, seem to lag behind companies that promote modern leadership.