Preparing for the Era of Persistent Disruption
The aftermath of the pandemic continues to have a profound impact on organizations worldwide. The amount of change that has taken place over the past 30 months is like a “Big Bang” happened, and it will take years—likely decades—before new norms are established. It’s time to start thinking about how to lead in the midst of rapid change because that’s our current reality, and it will persist for the foreseeable future. One of the most important things to consider is your leadership team. To get the results you want, you may have to change the dynamics of your leadership team to align with a very different strategic reality. It’s likely that your pre-pandemic leadership team won’t be able to handle the challenges your organization will face, so you must either change or adapt your leadership approach to succeed.
Why Change is Necessary
When norms are established and don’t change much over the decades, the idea of defining all known variables and mitigating potential risk through compliance and audit measures is very appealing. But in a climate where the marketplace is changing faster than an organization can assess, assimilate, and integrate into its strategic functions, it can be debilitating. Most organizations will efficiently put themselves out of business because managing to current norms is a self-limiting reality and a self-fulfilling prophecy.
As a result, it may be necessary to update or modify your existing leadership team accordingly. After all, pre-pandemic strategies may not be effective anymore when faced with the challenges of a post-pandemic landscape. As such, it’s important to evaluate your current leadership structure and determine whether any changes are needed in order for you to succeed today and in the future.
What Changes Can Be Made?
Several options are available when considering changes and updates to your leadership team. You can choose from a variety of approaches, such as restructuring roles, introducing new skill sets, diversifying backgrounds, or bringing on board new members with fresh perspectives.
Depending on the size of your organization and what kind of changes need to be made, different approaches will work better than others. It’s essential that you make sure everyone involved is on board with any changes, especially if they involve major shifts in responsibilities or authority levels.
Hiring New Leaders
In some cases, it may be necessary to bring on additional leaders who can help you lead into the future. Those who have experience navigating challenging times—like those we are currently facing—may be well suited for these positions because they understand how best to respond in difficult situations and know how best to lead organizations through them successfully. Of course, hiring new leaders also involves thoroughly vetting them beforehand so that you can ensure they possess both the skillset and cultural fit necessary for leading an organization through these difficult times ahead.
It’s essential that organizations take stock of their current leadership teams and consider potential changes that could help them navigate this unique moment in history effectively. You must take steps now to be ready for whatever comes next! By choosing to pivot your leadership team now, you can ensure you’re prepared for a very different leadership reality ahead.
Ben Stroup is Chief Growth Architect and President at Velocity Strategy Solutions where he helps leaders design, develop, and deploy smarter business growth strategies. Ben is a futurist, disruptor, and data champion. He leads a team that takes a structured learning approach to business challenges, which allows them to assist leaders in bridging the gap between ideas, innovation, and revenue—taking ideas from mind to market.
Velocity Strategy Solutions is an on-demand, next-generation business strategy and management consulting firm which provides clients with a relentless focus on data, execution, and results that positively impact the bottom line. Velocity delivers integrated people and revenue strategies combined with a disciplined approach to growth architecture that elevates the capacity of leaders, teams, and organizations to succeed and win more.