Written by: Rodolfo Parlati, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
How many times, over time, have you encountered the topic of leadership? You have read about the key characteristics of a leader and how these are key factors for every organization. On the other hand, however, what are the main obstacles facing the spread of effective leadership?
Leadership is primarily about managing people. It is important to have great ideas and a strategic vision but this will not get you very far if your collaborators are not willing to follow you. Being a leader means generating a following and the strength of leadership is based on the recognition that comes from below, not from powers that are conferred from above. The leader acts following his principles, but he also knows how to adapt his behaviour from time to time to the context and particular circumstances. In particular, the greatest difficulties encountered in spreading leadership are related to the hierarchical vision of the organization and resistance to change.
Regarding the first aspect, it is important to consider that a traditional hierarchical structure can certainly be a deterrent for the development of more effective forms of distribution of power and responsibilities. If an organization wants to be dynamic and reactive, it is necessary to create a system that empowers every single employee, giving everyone without distinction the authority to make their own decisions. According to this approach, the manager will no longer have the task of solving everyone's problems and taking responsibility for everything but it will be the collaborator, instead, who will take responsibility for his work, having the authority to face and solve the problems independently. problems that emerge from time to time.
All this becomes a real need if we take into account the current social and economic context, in which uncertainty is certainly the constant. And here we come to the second obstacle to the spread of effective leadership. Indeed, it is precisely by acquiring the ability to innovate and embrace changes in society and the market that one can make a difference. The approach to change must become part of the organizational structure, starting with people, passing through groups, and then spreading to the entire organization. Where does all this start from? From culture. When leaders take into consideration the values that firstly led the company's actions, they have a clear direction to follow. Starting from culture also means to start from people. If they feel forced to change, they will probably react by distrusting and objecting. Effective leaders can be models of attitudes and behaviours to take, as well as encouraging people to follow the development path and embrace a common vision.
How to overcome the resistance to change?
Here are some behaviours an effective leader can practice to overcome resistance to change:
Raise awareness in people. Before they can embrace change and make it successful, collaborators need to understand its aspects and the resulting benefits so that they can make it their own.
Develop collaboration and support activities. Leaders must be able to provide support when people are resistant due to fear or anxiety. Organizing discussion groups to help people talk about their concerns and foster mutual collaboration are activities that facilitate change management.
Spread the organizational culture. Effectively promoting change also involves the distribution of proven guides, tools and methods that can be adapted from time to time to the new processes to be implemented.
Encourage corporate training. To ensure the success of the organizational change process, it is also necessary to increase the activities related to training projects aimed at improving personal effectiveness.
Conclusions
According to recent research, the acquisition of widespread effective leadership necessarily passes through the encouragement of personal development and cooperation, but also through the enhancement of diversity and openness to new ideas. In this context, therefore, leadership must be based on the following key competencies:
Agility. Knowing how to manage uncertainty, capturing and interpreting even the weakest signals.
Adaptability. Be flexible to identify strengths and enhance the diversity of collaborators, transforming them into energy to be exploited in achieving objectives.
Authenticity. Be open, welcoming, and authentic.
Innovation. Encourage autonomy of thought and encourage everyone to experiment.
Humility. Knowing how to recognize and develop the talent of others for the benefit of the whole group.
Neuroleadership. Understand others more by studying aspects such as the psychological, ethical, and social aspects.
Humanization. Putting the person at the helm of the processes, taking into account the increasing digitization.
All this shows how the enhancement of soft skills is a crucial aspect on which companies choose to base their training strategy, together with the identification of the role of leader and the required skills. These are all issues of fundamental importance to meet the challenges of a constantly evolving current context, in which traditional tools seem to no longer be sufficient
Rodolfo Parlati, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine Rodolfo Parlati is a Professional Life & Executive Coach. Always inspired by the desire to impact others positively, his mission is to help people and professionals be happy and successful by finding out their inner potential and exploring the right path to follow to "give shape" to their goals. Passionate about building connections, the key elements of his coaching strategy are creating meaningful actions to attain the clients' goals, knowing what is holding them back, and supporting them in finding higher awareness. His natural curiosity has always driven him to be an eager lifelong learner, explore new fields, and look for the answers to any question.
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