As more and more people around the world cultivate their leadership culture, the existing mould of a leader’s profile is also evolving. This disruption is calling for a new breed of leaders, those who emphasise creativity, collaboration, and inclusivity. This disruption caused by the pandemic has prompted leaders to learn to collaborate, work with peers and employees in the “new normal” and lead with creativity and not just for productivity. 

In a recent webcast by People Matters and Disprz, Asrif Yusoff, Petronas and Shweta Kumar, Chief Skilling Architect, Disprz Leadership Centre decoded some of the key challenges like, ‘What are the traits and competencies that enable business leaders to drive greater impact?’, ‘How can organisations develop leaders who can translate vision into action?’, and ‘How can employers develop and invest in learning programmes to empower leaders?’.

Here are the key learnings from the session:

Empathy, flexibility are the key elements that a leadership style of “new normal” demands

Taking the example of his organisation, Petronas, Yusoff shares that for them, increased flexibility, empathy, and trust. 

He said, “I think most organisations are being more receptive to remote working flexibility in the way we communicate either in person or in the virtual environment. This also holds for learning– flexibility in the way we learn which is where this first comes into play in trying to address these needs of organisations right.”

He adds, “In addition to flexibility, I think one of the super-critical skills for a leader is empathy. It has been important all these while but coming out of the pandemic, understanding the challenges that each of us faces while managing personal commitments is a key to better talent management. Empathy is crucial for us to ensure that we take care of each other.”

Making learning flexible & hybrid

In the context of Petronas Leadership Centre, Yusoff reflects how the learning programs were conducted 100% in-person, in the classroom. And in the past year, they are delivering some leadership development courses that are 100% online. “ We were of the assumption that learning engagement goes higher with the classroom mode of learning wherein facilitator and learner can interact in-person, however, the new normal proved that similar engagement can be built with the right technology, online.” however, there is a percentage of talent which prefers classroom training, paving way for us to adopt a flexible approach to learning– hybrid.

Kumar also encouraged adopting a hybrid way of learning stating, “We also believe in a hybrid model and we've been believing in a hybrid model long before the pandemic started. The reason is that we believe that technology provides you with efficiency and scalability.”

From the session, it was evident that as more and more people around the world exert their leadership and participate equally in business, the existing mould of a leader's profile is slowly becoming irrelevant. This disruption is calling for a new breed of leaders. Ones who will emphasize creativity, collaboration, and inclusivity.

Due to the disruption caused by this pandemic, leaders must learn to collaborate in a multiverse of networked organizations, working with co-located and non-co-located peers and employees. Leaders must lead for creativity rather than productivity.

To get full insights from the session, click here to watch the webcast.