Being a good leader isn’t easy. There are just too many traits required and too much underlying belief that can make the difference between success and failure in an organisation. That’s why, oftentimes, many step into management and supervisory roles and find themselves wondering, “What are the key drivers? And how can I be a better leader to my workers and colleagues?”
To answer the question of what makes a great leader, it’s perhaps good to know what they constantly do first. Great leaders constantly understand the importance of a leadership strategy and are explicit about the kind of leadership they need in order to achieve their organisation’s business strategy. They first examine the key drivers of the business before making certain that they develop and formulate detailed business strategies through their abilities and/or particular skills.
Although it was a challenge before, this has intensified during the recent Covid-19 crisis, with organisations trying to adapt quickly to the remote work model. And amid an unprecedented pandemic and economic crisis, even the best leaders are struggling with how to navigate turbulent waters. As you look to ‘what’s the next step’ in your management and supervisory role, it’s high time to take a better look at how the pandemic has affected traditional leadership, along with the opportunities leaders can take and turn their organisations into something better than ever seemed before.
How Did The Pandemic Change The Way Leaders Lead?
The biggest difference between today’s leaders faced by a crisis and traditional leaders is that the former act with urgency. As a leader amid an unprecedented pandemic, you may be tempted to delay decision-making and have the tendency to wait for more information and clarity.
But as with the case of New Zealand’s Prime Minister Ardern, she went against the natural tendency toward delay, and jumped into the fray where she set the alert level at two, restricting some travel and urging people to limit contact even when New Zealand had only 52 confirmed cases that time.
And when the cases grew to 205 four days later, the alert system was raised to level four, triggering a nationwide lockdown. Ardern’s actions showed that wasting vital time in the vain hope that greater clarity would come proved to be dangerous, particularly in the face of a pandemic with an exponential growth rate. Her actions yield support and reveal a great deal about what good leadership looks like during this pandemic.
Another key element is the ability to communicate with transparency. It’s important to note the significance of being as clear as humanly possible about what you know and try to convey in a way that people can understand. Additionally, because of the novelty and complexity of the pandemic, Ardern’s speech was focused solely on giving a hopeful vision of the future instead of delivering only negative information.
How To Be A Better Leader In The Long Haul
In business, leadership is linked to missions, and any definition has to take that into account. Therefore, as they are faced with the novelty and rapid evolution of the pandemic, those who are viewed as effective in corporate contexts are the ones who are steady and unrelenting in staying the course to fulfil their missions. They are the ones to constantly update their understanding of prior probabilities, and deliberately use strategies to elicit new information and learn rapidly so as to stay the course.
But this is by no means the only trait to possess. As leaders are human, it is inevitable that missteps and mistakes are expected, especially when contending with a crisis like the ongoing pandemic. While it is more likely to revert to defensiveness or blame when mistakes are made, great leaders understand that they must stay focused on the goal and look ahead to continue solving the next and most pressing problems. They feel personally accountable for their missteps or mistakes and see it just as important as how they address the crisis.
In short, when an organisation is faced with an unfortunate crisis, they are the solution. They set and deliver the vision to their workers and colleagues in a way that not only demonstrates urgency, but with transparency.
Do you need to analyse the extraordinary challenges posed by today’s coronavirus crisis and how good leadership can ensure you’re successfully leading your teams? Write to us at info@businessacademia.co
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