We have been living in a VUCA world for sometime but nothing could have prepared us for just how volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous the last few months have been. Everyday is unpredictable and events unfold in an unexpected way. It becomes more difficult to strategise or predict how things will unfold. Historical data becomes less useful and leaders are forced to be both reactive and proactive like never before.
Our world is more complex. Rarely is there one single cause and effect and leaders must look for all of the underlying reasons why performance, behaviour or culture is the way it is. The solutions are intermingled with so many variables and choosing the right path is often a “best guess” rather than certain decision.
So how do leaders need to lead now and still create open, honest and stable environments for their people and customers? Although you as the leader will always be ultimately responsible for the decisions, a shift towards more collaborative and participative leadership is winning. Complex problems require collective and diverse thinking to find creative answers.
Leaders need to create environments where there are just enough boundaries to ensure people are working in the right way, but enough freedom so that they can do their best work and best thinking. When people feel aligned to a common goal or cause, and are involved in the solutions – trusted in the solutions, you can adapt and innovate at lightening speed. We have seen this to be true whilst in lockdown. A common cause – innovation and amazing teamwork in practice.
Successful Leaders:
- Created a vision around how we would all work together
- Were honest and transparent about what was certain and what wasn’t
- Were empathetic and compassionate about others needs and circumstances
- Became ultra organised, focusing on priorities, resources and skills and delegating efficiently
- Became super clear in their communication, focusing on what matters – the urgent and important
- Became over communicators, over multiple mediums, formal and informal
- Practiced agility and flexibility, breaking down hierarchies and old systems to adapt and change
How you treated your people and customers in this time of great uncertainty will be your legacy. It’s how you will be remembered. What will be your legacy?
I have had many coaching conversations with business leaders over the last few months and I have set them all a challenge. Their challenge is to keep a record every day. I ask them to reflect on what went well, what could have gone better and how they were a leader. Leading in times of uncertainty enables you to break old belief systems about what work is and how it should be done. You will notice some people rise to the challenge, others might struggle. You may have learned how to communicate, create stability, build trust or give clarity. Perhaps your team has worked together more effectively, or those meetings became super focused and actions were recorded. Perhaps you focused on solutions rather than problems and became more proactive rather than reactive. Did you sweat the small stuff, or step up to lead with impact?
Everything that worked well should be bottled up and ingrained into the fabric of your business or team in the future, You have the opportunity to reset, reinvent and reintegrate and that’s something few of us get in our lifetime. This is your opportunity to be the best leader you can be.
Lucy Barkas, Founder of 3WH, a leadership and team development consultancy, helps Leaders to step up, take control and lead with impact.