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How to tackle 21st-century challenges: A leader’s guide

Leading Off

Meet the moment ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 
Leading Off

Brought to you by Alex Panas, global leader of industries, & Axel Karlsson, global leader of functional practices and growth platforms

Welcome to the latest edition of Leading Off. We hope you find our insights useful. Let us know what you think at Alex_Panas@McKinsey.com and Axel_Karlsson@McKinsey.com.

—Alex and Axel
An image linking to the web page “The art of 21st-century leadership: From succession planning to building a leadership factory” on McKinsey.com.

The biggest hurdle to creating resilient and high-performing teams is developing a deep bench of leaders who can excel in a turbulent world, according to McKinsey global managing partner Bob Sternfels, senior partners Daniel Pacthod and Kurt Strovink, and senior adviser Wyman Howard. They note that CEOs face a growing number of critical issues to manage, and the personal attributes and best practices associated with strong leadership have changed substantially over time. Some of the most important traits for current and future leaders include maintaining positive energy, selflessness, curiosity, grit, and even a sense of humor. CEOs should also be able to convey vision and possibilities both inside and outside of the organization and engage authentically with employees, customers, and other stakeholders. Companies should prioritize investing in their own “leadership factories” and providing on-the-job training for 21st-century leaders to develop these skills. The authors say: “The organizations that treat leadership development as a core capability and proactively address the needs of both existing and aspiring leaders can raise their overall resilience and substantially improve the odds that they will be able to withstand disruption—whatever it is, and whenever it appears next.”
An image linking to the web page “Leading from the inside out: Why CEOs must make time for self-reflection” on McKinsey.com.

Lead yourself before you lead others. That’s a fundamental lesson for current and future leaders, says McKinsey senior partner Ramesh Srinivasan, coauthor of The Journey of Leadership: How CEOs Can Learn to Lead from the Inside Out. In a recent episode of The McKinsey Podcast, Srinivasan and one of his coauthors, senior partner emeritus Hans-Werner Kaas, emphasize that leaders must be self-aware and learn how to balance contrasting qualities, such as courage and curiosity or confidence and humility, so they can be more effective in guiding their organizations and employees. “We call it human-centric leadership,” Srinivasan says. “Our belief is that leaders need to reflect on their purpose, who they are, how they show up in the world, and how they can inspire their teams and the institutions they’re leading.”
An image linking to the web page “Five bold moves to quickly transform your organization’s culture” on McKinsey.com.

Fostering an inclusive culture is an essential step to motivate today’s employees, many of whom are yearning for greater connection to their work. Senior partners Brooke Weddle and John Parsons and their coauthors identify several “power moves” that leaders can take to involve employees in culture changes that make them feel more engaged, purposeful, and productive. These include exposing their teams to new ideas and best practices that may not have been previously considered, encouraging employees to volunteer for culture-change roles, and embedding new rituals and routines into the workplace to break old, unproductive habits. The authors note that it’s critical “for leaders in culture transformations to widen the aperture for teams and individuals in their organizations. They must find space for creativity, build enthusiasm for it, and inject it into employees’ everyday activities.”

Lead by embracing a new approach.

— Edited by Eric Quiñones, senior editor, New York

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by "McKinsey Leading Off" <publishing@email.mckinsey.com> - 04:55 - 4 Nov 2024