Covid: era leadership: Being more human
23/02/2021 05:00
By Chris Taylor
NEW YORK, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Leading when you know where the
world is headed is one thing, but it is something else when the
future is uncertain.
Corporate executives are facing this challenge in the
COVID-19 era, having to chart a path forward in foggy conditions
without a map.
As a top headhunter who finds, develops and places those
leaders, Krishnan Rajagopalan has seen first-hand how management
has changed at this moment in history.
The president and chief executive of Heidrick & Struggles
sat down with Reuters to discuss how leaders can keep their
teams focused, productive and moving forward.
Q: How has leadership changed in the past year?
A: Leaders needed to be agile. That's a key way we assess
people: Agility means having foresight, adaptability,
resilience. That was so important last year, when we all
experienced setback after setback.
But lots of other attributes became critical, too. Those who
were able to embrace building a diverse and inclusive
organization became very successful. Communication skills became
very important, because you had to communicate more than you
ever had to before. And on the personal side, you had to be able
to show some humanity and empathy.
Q: Has this crisis changed what companies are looking for in
leaders?
A: What people began to talk to us about was the human side
of leadership. The ability to focus on not just on profits, but
people.
There was more emphasis on human leaders, who could
communicate, and be fair and authentic, and who really believe
in diversity and inclusion. The bars on those issues were set
much higher.
Q: Are there any particular CEOs who serve as good role
models, for what leaders can be?
A: I really respect (Chief Executive) Satya Nadella at
Microsoft. He focuses on the big picture, he can motivate
people, and he thinks about the purpose of the company quite a
bit. He thinks about their place in the community and on the
planet.
Even when they moved to fully remote work, he continued to
focus on company purpose and how to drive that. I like that
consistency.
Q: You have mentioned the importance of diversity and
inclusion, so how do you approach that as a search firm?
A: In 2018, we came out and said that at the board level, we
would present a fully diverse slate on candidates on all our
board searches.
We have been measuring the diversity of placements across
our whole system. Last year in the Americas nearly 60% of our
placements at the board level were diverse, and over 40% of our
placements overall. We think about this issue on every search.
Q: How do you coach people through Imposter Syndrome, or not
feeling qualified enough to be leaders?
A: Through our consulting business, we've certainly seen an
uptick from leaders raising concerns about Imposter Syndrome as
pandemic uncertainty continues.
We remind our clients that all of us are operating in a "new
norm" - no one has been through this current situation of
leading through a pandemic. The really good leaders aren't
afraid to acknowledge to their teams that they don't know
everything, and they are transparent and authentic about that.
Q: Emotionally this era has been hard on employees and
leaders alike. What advice do you have for people about pushing
through?
A: Be mindful of your mental well-being. What applies to
employees, applies to leaders as well. It's OK to be vulnerable,
and to show that with your team.
I tell people not to bottle it all up. Communicate,
communicate, communicate.
Q: Do you see this pace of change continuing in 2021?
A: It's only going to increase. When you think about it, we
went from largely office-based environments to virtual worlds so
incredibly fast. That pace is going to continue, and we're not
going to return to previous ways of working. The world is
changing, and leaders are changing as well.
(Editing by Lauren Young and Richard Chang)
((lauren.young@thomsonreuters.com; 646-223-6166; Reuters
Messaging: lauren.young.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net (Twitter
@laurenyoung))