The workplace of tomorrow is already here. In the last couple of years, industry experts have weighed on what the future of work will be like, particularly with the extensive adoption of technology trends like Artificial Intelligence and The Internet of Things.
According to McKinsey’s article, there will be a considerable shift in the skills and capabilities required for work, as the demand for technological, social and emotional, and higher cognitive skills will rise by 2030.
Over the next ten to twenty years, the acceptance of AI technologies and automation will alter the workplace as people will progressively interact with ever-smarter machines and technologies.
These technologies, and that human-machine exchange, will bring plenty of benefits in the form of GDP growth, improved overall performance, higher productivity levels, and new prosperity. However, the technologies will undoubtedly change human workers’ skills, especially of people in leadership job positions.
Other trends like globalization, mobility, and the immense rise of e-learning, where more and more people choose to obtain online degrees from the most prestigious colleges in the world instead of their traditional counterparts, will further bring radical changes to the work environment as we know it.
With strong leadership skills always in high demand, upgrading them can undoubtedly give you a competitive advantage. Influential leaders will ever exist and will forever remain highly valued at every level of businesses to engage, inspire, and positively influence their co-workers and stakeholders.
Thereby, for people aspiring to leadership roles, there’s a huge responsibility and need to understand the skills required in the workplace of tomorrow and prepare. Without further ado, here are the top six leadership skills for the workplace of tomorrow.
Table of Contents
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is perhaps the most crucial skill that business leaders will be expected to possess soon. To put it simply, emotional intelligence is the ability to understand your effect on others and manage yourself accordingly.
Modern-day leaders understand that the days of authoritative and overbearing leadership are long gone. Future leaders are expected to be more caring, empathic, and listening to co-workers and people in general.
The nucleus of emotional intelligence is self-awareness, as it’s impossible to understand others if you don’t understand your behaviors and motivations. Emotional intelligence is a must to attract and retain the best people around you by using your leadership skills.
Nowadays, employees no longer work in one company for forty years and retire. They easily quit jobs where they don’t find empathy.
Diversity And Inclusion
The workplace of tomorrow is expected to be way more diverse and inclusive, bringing people together irrespective of their gender, age, ethnicity, beliefs, personality, or location.
Diverse workplaces will become more successful, and future leaders must have a sufficient understanding of all possible forms of diversity and how to manage it for the work environment to be effective.
It’s essential to have hiring policies that promote inclusion and build a work environment that addresses different types of people.
Understanding Of Technology
In this day and age, businesses are immensely impacted by technological advancements. Machine learning, AI, blockchain technology, and others are predicted to completely change how we live, work, and conduct business. Also, customer expectations and consumer tastes are constantly evolving as new technologies emerge.
For that reason, as a leader, it’s vital to have a very refined understanding of how these new technologies work, how they can impact your business and the organizations your company might need to make to accommodate them to stay relevant in its line of work.
The leaders of tomorrow must have a fair understanding of data, spot opportunities, and leverage opportunities presented by technology.
Adaptability To Constant Change
Even though change is a constant phenomenon, the rate of changes and disruptions brought on by technology recently has been gigantic.
As the digital revolution lasts, consumer expectations keep evolving, and businesses have to stay ahead of such changes of scenarios.
For instance, customers now shop with multiple devices that conventional webshop solutions can’t support, so omnichannel sales and logistics are must-haves for customer retention and higher customer loyalty.
Top-tier business leaders must be willing to continuously adapt to industry changes to boost their organization’s revenues.
Ethical Practice And Civic-Mindedness
In the following years, leaders will set the standard for their teams based on their values more than at any other point in history. Things like the stuff you talk about, do, and allow will all become part of your team’s culture.
As a leader, if you’re talking about ethics and doing the right thing, chances are, your team will pick up on that because what leaders value gets valued by their teams.
The company commonly dictates matters like ethics and civic-mindedness through written policies and procedures that leaders should learn.
However, many leaders are aware that policies exist but only refer to them in times of crisis. Instead, leaders should become familiar with the guidelines to be better prepared when an ethical situation occurs.
The impression is that nowadays, most leaders don’t take ethics as seriously as they should. This practice will undoubtedly change in the following years. We advise all future leaders to have ethics always front-of-mind, so when a problem arises, they can handle it promptly and effectively.
Strong Innovative Mindset
For companies to keep pace in today’s ultra-competitive marketplace, innovation needs to become an organizational priority, and this culture should start at the top.
Just like regular employees, leaders can quickly get stuck in a rut performing their everyday tasks because all people are creatures of habit.
Innovation is a superb way for leaders to “spice things up” and try something new, which often leads to fantastic ideas and profitable business dealings.
Modern-day leaders are responsible for creating a working environment where people will feel psychologically safe to try new things and see how they do, even if they fail.
Leaders who possess a robust, innovative mindset are the ones who are continually learning and figuring out ways to fill the gaps and develop new skills that are meaningful to them.
Final Words
Curious to know how you can gain these skills and incorporate them into your everyday environment? Easy. The only way to learn leadership skills is by actively doing them.
Take charge of how you spend your time and what you learn, practice various ways of leading, and follow the top leaders’ attributes in your industry.
Focus on your leadership skills, get involved in leading groups, and find ways to empower your team and observe what’s working for you.
