In a world that is becoming ever more complex and fast-paced, the pressure on managers is constantly increasing. The rapid pace of change in the business world and the constant need to adapt present leaders with immense challenges. We are also currently experiencing a worrying trend: so-called leader-bashing. As a leader, you are often blamed for grievances and problems in companies, which further increases the already high pressure.
This pressure results not only from the increased frequency of change and upheaval, but also from the high expectations placed on you. Not only do you have to react quickly and flexibly to changes, you also have to motivate your team and keep the company on course for success at the same time. This pressure creates a challenging situation. To counter this, there are four fields of action in leadership to positively shape leadership:
Field of Action 1: Strengthen Self-Organization
Self-organization is linked to organized self-responsibility. For you as a leader, strengthening self-organization in the team means letting go of micro-control and instead handing over responsibility to your team members, demanding and encouraging employees to take responsibility for themselves. Hierarchical thinking does not fit in with this maxim. Instead, it is important to respect each employee as an expert and micromanager in their own area. Agile leaders focus more on the role of developing and strengthening employees and the company. The management role in the sense of a controlling authority only takes place in a rather subtle, coaching form and is effectively supplemented by social control and peer pressure within the team.
Field of Action 2: Implementing a Learning Culture
Companies are facing the challenge of lifelong learning, especially in a complex VUCA world. To be successful, they need a willingness to experiment and the courage to make mistakes in order to learn and evolve from them. As a leader, you play a central role by promoting a participative leadership style and creating an environment that supports the free exchange of knowledge and open dialogue to establish a culture of shared learning. The role of the leader is shifting from traditional leadership towards that of a supporter and learning companion, empowering employees through individual learning programs or interactions with customers and experts. A culture of knowledge sharing and collective learning, supported by a shared mindset, is crucial for building such a learning culture.
Field of Action 3: Conveying Messages Credibly
Outer clarity follows inner clarity: before you can formulate what you want or need to say, you need to have reflected on what you think. Finding your own inner attitude is a prerequisite for credible communication. Sometimes leaders find it difficult to support decisions that have been communicated elsewhere and that should be communicated to their own team or employees.
You can answer the following questions to prepare your communication and decide how you want to communicate your messages (for the questions, see A. Kühn & F. Kühn, 2017):
- What is bad for me/my employees about a decision and what is just new, disruptive or inconvenient?
- How dramatic is this change or message really and what are the specific consequences for me and my employees?
- Why was this decision necessary and what is it intended to achieve from a strategic perspective?
- What are the medium-term effects or risks for me and my employees if everything continues as before?
- What is good about the decision, what could improve as a result?
- How realistic is a successful implementation and what can we contribute?
- What role do I play in the current situation and what shoe do I have to put on? (Responsibility for decision-making – Responsibility for implementation – Employee responsibility)
- Do I have enough information or do I need more background information to make a decision?
Field of Action 4: Building a Culture of Error Tolerance
A positive error culture helps to reduce fears and uncertainties among employees and establish a climate of trust. You can think about the things that went wrong this week and how you dealt with them. You can consider the following points:
Accept that mistakes are part of human actions: Mistakes happen unintentionally, but instead of investigating the causes, many people look for someone to blame, as they mistakenly consider mistakes as “signs of stupidity.” This leads to mistakes being covered up and precious time being lost, which is needed to solve problems and avoid chains of errors.
Address mishaps early and consistently: This prevents the culprit from being plagued by self-blame and fear of exposure. Daniel Gilbert describes this as the “psychological immune system,” which allows our brains to react to crises with defense strategies, so our level of happiness usually returns to baseline after a setback.
Be relaxed about mistakes and support rather than demonize: When customers are angry, business is lost, and the boss is furious, it’s tough. But the demand to act flawlessly is unrealistic. According to experts, perfectionists and control freaks make more mistakes than more relaxed people. Also, constant criticism after failure is detrimental, as studies from the University of Vienna in 2014 show: frequent error feedback reduces creativity and the frequency of new ideas.
Admit mistakes, but don’t tie your self-esteem to the stigma of “getting it right”: Admitting mistakes is the best way to learn, but one should neither indulge in self-destruction nor blame others. It is important to recognize that a mistake does not equate to failure. The fact is: mistakes can be both instructive and trigger deep self-doubt.
Apologize properly: Saying “Sorry, that was my mistake” is difficult for many, but an apology can bring respect and self-empowerment. Researchers at Ohio State University have developed a 5-point plan for the perfect apology: express regret, explain, admit fault, show responsibility, offer to make amends, and ask for forgiveness. However, the components are not equally important. The most crucial element is admitting fault.
In difficult times, the four areas of action – self-organization, learning culture, conveying messages credibly, and error culture – offer valuable approaches for successful leadership. A leader who shares responsibility, promotes continuous learning, communicates authentically, and establishes a positive error culture creates an environment in which teams can thrive.
With this clear focus, leaders can not only overcome current challenges but also build a more resilient and future-proof organization. This way, leadership becomes the driving force for sustainable success.
