In a new report on the future of leadership, Jean-Marc Laouchez, President of the Korn Ferry Institute talks about the need for a Self-Disruptive leadership model:
“Moving forward, leaders must focus on delegating responsibilities outside of their core purpose, and letting front-line managers define the rules. By doing this, not only do Self-Disruptive Leaders empower others to make decisions and develop into the best they can be, but they gain time and organizational efficiency, while helping fuel grassroots innovation.”
So what does that mean for organizations to be successful in developing their leadership pipeline to meet the future? The findings suggest that mid-level leaders are the new senior leaders. In the past, middle management would often get stuck in between senior leadership decision-making and team member execution. But this Self-Disruptive leadership model implores companies to give their mid-level managers the space and authority to take action and propel their teams forward.
To Empower Mid-Level Leaders To Take The Reigns Korn Ferry Suggests Three Critical Steps:
1. Develop New Mindsets
Traditional leadership development focuses on skills and behaviors, but this needs to be supplemented with mindset development to successfully advance new Self-Disruptive Leaders. There will be a need to swap out old thinking mindsets for future mindsets:
- Move from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset, where leaders are encouraged to take risks with minimal or ambiguous information and not worry about making a mistake.
- Move from being a know-it-all to a learn-it-all. Leaders need to empower everyone on the team to be an expert.
- Move from uncertainty to confidence. Each leader at every level will need to believe in their decisions and have the confidence to share their ideas in an impactful way.
To be a Self-Disruptive Leader it is critical to have a growth mindset. Share on X
2. Open Up Leadership Development Opportunities
Leadership development must become available to more people. In the past, it often has been elitist and focused on certain individuals; it needs to move toward a collective model that empowers everyone in a company to develop their leadership capabilities. Organizations need to see the value in developing skills at every level to become stronger communicators, collaborators and decision-makers. There needs to be a cultural shift to the importance of growing each individual.
3. Foster “Always-On” Development
Organizations need to facilitate always-on development not only by providing learning opportunities but by helping busy employees navigate training easily and rewarding them for learning. Simultaneously, individuals at all levels need to take ownership of their own development. Together, this will build an employment contract built on mutual growth. To empower leaders at all levels to own their own development:
- Organizations need to create individual development plans that meet the needs of both the leader and the team.
- Coaching and mentoring programs need to be created and monitored.
- Reverse mentoring partnerships need to evolve to show learning is a two-way street.
- Build a workplace that encourages storytelling and sharing between all levels of leadership.
What additional steps have you taken to become a Self-Disruptive Leader?
If you are interested in building a pipeline of Self-Disruptive Leaders please let me know.
I love this concept. Senior leaders can either focus on managing their managers or empower them to do what they were hired to do. Beautiful ripples happen with self-disruptive leadership… The senior team gets to do great work that matters too.
Thanks for sharing. Has me thinking and reflecting too.
Alli
Well said Alli! When leaders, especially mid-level, are given the authority to make decisions and take action there will be stronger outcomes for a team and an organization. Leaders in those more frontline positions are more likely able to meet the needs of customers and therefore driving the team’s direction. Also in the fast-paced global economy today each leader regardless of their level must be able to pivot quickly and have a growth mindset.
Thanks as always for adding your insights!
I love the concept of “always on” development. We love to see managers look for every opportunity to support their team with small learning moments of micro-learning. I also think it’s helpful to ask ourselves at the end of each week, “what have I learned this week?” Always on development involves taking the time to reflect on what we’re learning and what we need to learn.
I agree that leaders can support each other and team members by making themselves approachable and available for small learning moments. I love your question: “What have I learned this week?” as it reminds us to take stock in even a small lesson. Often the smaller teachings lead to bigger accomplishments and growth.
Thanks Karin for adding your wonderful thoughts!
I love all of your suggestions, Terri, but the one that resonated the most with me was “foster an always-on attitude.” We are surrounded by opportunities to learn new things, be inspired by different opinions, and create something out of our comfort zone. I see too many people who shut down when confronted with people or ideas that don’t conform to the old way of thinking. I really like your point about mentoring being a two-way street. So true and yet so seldom encouraged…
Self-Disruptive leaders do need to remain open to new and unfamiliar situations in order to take risks and innovate. When we get stuck in doing things that we have always done in the ways we are accustomed, we often miss out on a new strategy or lesson. It’s almost like we need to keep our “antennas” up and await new signals with energy and excitement.
Thanks LaRae for your terrific additions!