4 Essential Skills for Next Generation of Leaders

The work environment after the Covid-19 crisis is likely to follow a hybrid model, which requires flexible leaders who focus on people. Also, learning and development teams will need to focus on 4 key areas of training to ensure that they are properly equipped for the work.

The COVID-19 crisis has reshaped leadership from the strict regimes that have always characterized organizations to more flexible, open, and active leaders, using new models that rely on inclusiveness, empathy, and tolerance for failure and openness in communication. This is one of the main findings of the Global Alliance in New Administrative Education report (CEMS), which identifies the main challenges facing leaders and the development of leadership in a time of unprecedented uncertainty.

The main research conducted in the report found that for 87% of participants, the COVID-19 crisis has had a significant impact on business and teams in the following ways:

1. New markets: A shift from global to local markets.
2. New ways of communicating: From direct communication to digital communication.
3. New ways of working: From fixed to flexible, from working in the office to working anywhere.
4. New attitudes towards work: From tried and tested to flexible and efficient.

Effective leadership is very important:

For these new working methods to be positive, leadership must be effective. In general, participants in the report spoke of the need to balance between traditional leadership qualities and humanitarian qualities. While some things such as strategic vision and a focus on results remained important, other qualities such as empathy, ability to communicate, and flexibility in particular were more appreciated than before.

Organizations and leaders must build the psychological safety of individuals to be better, succeed, and develop under pressure. They must adopt a culture in which learning from failure is considered as valuable as learning from success. People are empowered to test and experiment with new methods, build new skills, and take responsibility without feeling blamed.

Response of Education and Development Professionals:

Within these new ways of working, there is a great opportunity to train innovative, empathetic, and self-motivated decision-makers who can lead change through this storm as they prepare for the next storm. In order to do so, learning and development professionals must possess the following four skills:

1. Empowering learners in the development process:

The moment learners participate in their development process, it excites their curiosity and motivates them to learn something new. All in all, it is about creating a comprehensive learning process, rather than just training, this is by asking what types of qualifications the organization wants to strengthen and then prepare alongside your teams.

When thinking about co-creation, you can ask trainees to think first about the goal and to determine what matters to them and why. Accordingly, they can decide what they want to learn and be creative about.

In addition, encourage learners to proactively look for opportunities and never stop learning. For example, they can become mentors, introduce themselves as mentors, or receive additional free courses offered by educational institutions around the world. Ask them constantly: “Now you know what you want to learn, but what experiences do you need to get you where you want to be?” Also, you can direct them to opportunities within the company to build skills and experiences.

2. Consider failure is an educational experience:

Failure is often viewed in a negative way, but this perspective can affect the organization. Encourage employees to think about how the most difficult experiences can help them grow instead of fearing failure. First, define failure, then structure it in the context of learning, and identify the right culture; What doesn't work is a growth experience.

There are practical things you can do. Reward the risk and include it in the company's operations, such as hiring and performance management, and include peer feedback as part of team meetings, as trainees discuss the difficulties they encounter. Also, put reverse mentoring plans into practice, as it is a very practical way to help senior employees learn while creating a safe learning environment for regular employees.

The more stories you can present to employees, whether in meetings, in training sessions, or during informal introductions, the better. These stories should not only be about success, but they should also talk about what didn't go according to plan and how they helped grow.

3. Adopting a growth mindset to develop meditation and thinking skills:

A growth mindset is the belief that if you work hard and persevere, you can grow and develop, and it means innate curiosity; That is, you can grow when things don't go well, and have confidence in yourself and always know that there is more to achieve.

As a specialist in learning and development, you can help establish a growth mindset by praising the process rather than being smart and intelligent. For example, instead of saying, “You're a very smart person,” say, “It's interesting how you did this, I like the process, ” as this encourages more curiosity and growth. Also, it encourages learners to get used to doing analysis from start to finish of the project, and to thinking about possible results so that they can learn from each problem they face.

4. Take advantage of digital and innovative methods to ensure inclusion in the learning process:

There is now a need to explore and invest in digital methods and technologies, such as mixed, virtual, and hybrid methods and tools. For example, Accenture uses virtual learning boards, through which you can document and share your learning and research with others around the world, including colleagues, as well as learn from others.

The forgetting curve - this curve shows how information is lost over time when no attempt is made to retain it - shows that people generally forget 75% of what they learn within six days. You need to apply the information quickly or you will forget it. For this reason, teaching using this type of technology is a great way to standardize the learning process and share it with others.

While it is necessary to invest in training in new technologies, experts in the learning and development process need to take responsibility for their own development. If you have curiosity and a growth mindset, you will find innovative ways to take advantage of the available technology. On the other hand, if you feel that you lack a growth mindset, be sure to check for unhelpful ideas and your resistance to change, and determine what prevents you from adopting new experiences. If you know the reason for that, you can start by experimenting and empowering others.

In conclusion:

It is important to thoroughly analyze when you need to use technology and decide when you can use it. There is no need to meet face to face these days unless you have an urgent need. After the COVID-19 crisis, there will be a demand for hybrid models, so the role of learning and development teams is to train innovative leaders who focus on the needs and goals of employees and flexibility in the   hybrid work environment.