By Joanne Brookfield
If you’ve ever had a job, then it’s highly likely you’ve complained about your boss. You may have had that manager who couldn’t manage their way out of a Word document, or perhaps they “micro-managed” you into seeking employment elsewhere.
Being an effective leader is an entirely different proposition to simply holding a leadership position, and in this rapidly changing tech-driven landscape, a whole new suite of skills is now required to successfully lead.
With Baby Boomers exiting the workforce and Gen Z, who place great value on social impact and purpose, now comprising a quarter of the labour market, this demographic shift has prompted a move away from the traditional “do as I say” leadership to one emphasising collaboration, authenticity, emotional intelligence, resilience and adaptability.
Quickening pace of change
The speed of technological advancement is also playing a key part. Sabine King, the director of career accelerator and student engagement at the UNSW Business School, quotes futurist Dr Ben Hamer who has noted that “we’re currently experiencing change at the fastest rate in history, but also at the slowest we will experience it for the rest of our lives”.
Sabine King, the director of career accelerator and student engagement at UNSW Business School.
The result, says King, is driving an increasing demand for lifelong learning and leadership development programs.
“We need people who we can follow, trust and align with,” she says. “Humans, in times of crisis or fast change, need humans. We need really strong people in organisations to lead us through those changes.“
So, it’s no longer enough to obtain your qualification and attend a conference or two down the track.
“We’re constantly needing to learn,” adds King. “We’re constantly learning, unlearning, relearning, and that’s where that lifelong learning space has really grown,” she says, referring to options to upskill that include traditional tertiary education, online degrees and short courses, or bespoke development programs for organisations to develop their staff and leadership teams.
“The new way of leadership revolves around EQ [emotional intelligence], authenticity, resilience and adaptability,” King explains, which means education now covers building emotional intelligence as a leader, communicating in an authentic way and developing a growth mindset.
“There are some excellent courses around design thinking, iterative development and failing fast,
moving from a fixed to a growth mindset, and many more.“
With the disruption of a global pandemic and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), plus a “21st-century super-hyper-connected, distributed workforce”, King says it’s never been more important for leaders to be adaptable and flexible.
Adapting, staying agile
By keeping abreast of change, and adapting where relevant, Marcella Romero has grown what began as a one-woman home-based business in 1998 into a group employing more than 600 people nationally across 150 offices.
Marcella Romero, CEO of Arriba Group.
As CEO of the Arriba Group, Romero guides three successful enterprises – Rehab Management, AimBig Employment and LiveBig – which assist more than 750,000 Australians following injury, disability, or ill health.
“One of our values across the group is very much around our people, but also being dynamic and agile,” explains Romero, who keeps her own leadership skills sharp by being a part of a CEO circle and having a mentor, in addition to constantly reading about the sector.
Weekly discussions with the leadership team have enabled Arriba Group to pivot as they’ve seen things coming, which includes investing heavily in AI three years ago.
“So, we are very prepared and quite informed in what we do,” she says.
Recent emotional intelligence testing across the group has also proved useful, “because I’m not perfect, and I certainly like feedback as to what I can do better as a leader, and we do that continuously,” says Romero, who promotes a culture of transparency, open communication and collaboration.
Everyone can lead
For Romero, the most important quality in a successful leader is authenticity “because people just
feel it.“
She leads by example, empowering people rather than demanding, and tries never to treat anyone in a way that she would not like to be treated.
Coming from a migrant background has also given her insight into the value of a diverse and inclusive workforce.
“With that comes different views, different opinions, and that allows you to make better, more informed, evidence-based decisions,” she says.
“The other bit that’s really important to me as a leader is my ‘why’. My ‘why’ is why I’m doing what I do – to empower the lives of the people that we serve – and that needs to come across in an authentic manner.“
It’s not only those at the top of the hierarchy who lead, points out UNSW’s King. “As individuals, we are leaders of our own careers; we have the chance to take these things into our own hands,” she says of undertaking opportunities to upskill.
“People who stay relevant and up to date with trends and ways of working will have more chances of success – or you get left behind.”
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