July 27, 2022

This paid piece is sponsored by Eide Bailly LLP.

A version of this article appeared on eidebailly.com.

The past few years have forced us to reexamine almost all aspects of business, and leadership is no exception. While there will always be fundamentals to good leadership that will remain a constant, there’s no question the landscape has changed. Today’s leaders are operating in a world that demands more transparency, technical savvy and emotional intelligence than ever before. The “EB & Flow” podcast recently wrapped up a series on the current state of leadership, talking to professionals with experience both leading and coaching others. Here are some trends leaders need to be aware of as they navigate 2022 and beyond.

Authenticity

It wasn’t too long ago that success for many leaders was measured only in profits and other hard numbers, and the world outside of that spreadsheet had little bearing on the choices an organization made. That’s just simply not true anymore. Societal events now play a role in what kind of workplace culture we create, and how leaders respond to what’s happening in the world is watched closely.

“Leaders today don’t really have a choice but to have a point of view, whatever that point of view may be,” said Vanessa Ruda, a senior partner at RHR International.

And the most important aspect of that response is that it is authentic. Leaders need to be transparent and honest in what they say and do because employees are looking to them to set the example for what kind of culture the organization represents. They want to know their leaders aren’t just using empty words, but that they actually care about how their employees feel.

“The landscape has, as we all know, shifted dramatically. And what I believe that means for leaders is we have to be more empathetic,” said Bethany Berkeley, owner of Dale Carnegie Training of North Dakota and Minnesota. “We need to be more agile, authentic and showcase empathy with everything that we do.”

Being comfortable with ambiguity and change

It’s fair to say that all of us, not just leaders, have learned some lessons in ambiguity and change the past several years. What leaders need to remember and take into account is that when difficult situations arise, they are often the ones who will have to make a final decision.

“Many people find success in their careers because they’re able to gather facts and gather data and analyze them quite well and make decisions,” Ruda said. “And when you’re sitting in those top roles, there’s much more ambiguity than one would think and the pressure to make decisions without complete information.”

It’s a bit of a balancing act where leaders need to have a strong point of view and be decisive based on goals and priorities, but also being open to new information that may bring out the need to pivot.

Avoid personal burnout

Ruda said one of the things she tries to prepare new leaders for is that the old saying “it’s lonely at the top” is often true. Leaders will see the circle of people they can confide in shrink because they will be privy to information they simply cannot share with others.

And that loneliness combined with the expectations of a leadership role often can leave leaders feeling burned out.

“I like to share with people that it’s important to not think of burnout as an end state,” said Kelsey Buell, founder of the Burnout Prevention Project.

“I like to think of it more as a continuum. And what I mean by that is every day we have an opportunity to either do things throughout our day that will help us move away from being burned out or that will cause us to move towards being burned out. And so if we can find ways to avoid prolonged stressors or ways to again continue to not be under pressure every single minute of our day, over time, that can really help us to continue to move away from burnout.”

And while a leader’s circle of trust may shrink, it’s important to think about the people who still can be in that circle and making sure you keep that network strong.

Take care of your people

If today’s leaders truly want to lay the groundwork for a successful organization in the future, then they need to take care of their people.

“Now more than ever, and I think for the foreseeable future, taking care of the health and well-being of your overall employee base is a must-have not a nice-to-have,” Ruda said. “My biggest piece of advice would be don’t lose sight of the human beings who are working in your organization.”

Asking your people questions about how they are feeling, what they want in a workplace culture and how to achieve that are critical in a time when many employees are weighing their career options.

“It’s so easy for leaders to have such a tunnel vision and focus on the goal that they forget to take care of their people,” Buell said. “And at the end of the day, if your people are taken care of, they will take care of you and the business. And if you have happy employees, you’ll have happy customers.”

To dig deeper into current leadership trends, visit eidebailly.com.