This year is shaping up to be another tough year for leaders. Geopolitical tensions are heightened, economic conditions are challenging, new technologies are disrupting the market and talent is in short supply. No one knows quite what is going to happen next. So, what are the key leadership skills that leaders need to survive – and thrive – during 2024?
1. Thinking quickly and strategically
“The fundamentals of good leadership do not change year on year,” says Gillian Pillans, research director at Corporate Research Forum. But leadership must reflect the realities of 2024, so leaders must rethink how they set direction to identify strategic opportunities dynamically and respond at speed. This means being hyper-alert to emerging threats and opportunities outside the organization.”
Pillans argues that leaders must design their organizations for rapid execution, setting up the organization to act quickly in response to data-driven insights. As she puts it: “This means speeding up decision-making, empowering those closest to customers to act and enabling cross-functional teams to come together and deliver with agility.”
2. Collaboration
“Collaboration will be critical for leaders if their organizations are to thrive in another anticipated year of bumps, shocks and crises,” says David Ross, strategist and author of Confronting The Storm. “When it comes to dealing with the ‘wicked’ problems we now face, leaders can no longer resolve these issues alone. They don’t have the time, expertise, or perspectives necessary to understand their context.”
Ross believes it’s critical to “look beyond your own views and those of your peers”, saying: “There are notable benefits from involving other organizations, sectors and even those you dislike talking to! If you are really open, innovation can be enabled through the ‘collision’ of ideas resulting from collaborating with people with similar interests, but different backgrounds.”
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3. Being a wellbeing role model
“If leaders were to measure staff wellbeing, they would soon find out that a lot of the measures companies put in place to help often have little to no impact,” says Ryan Hopkins, author of 52 Weeks of Wellbeing: A No-Nonsense Guide to a Fulfilling Work Life.
Fortunately, it doesn’t need to be this way. “Leaders need to understand what the common stressors are for employees and tackle them directly,” advises Hopkins. “Rather than organizing another wellbeing session, would it make more of a difference for employees to reduce the plague of meetings they are faced with every day, to allow their brains to reset and stress to dissolve?”
It’s key to establish clear expectations around communication outside working hours and lead by example. “Shut down your laptop, no ‘just one look’, or ‘one last email’ and encourage your team to do the same,” says Hopkins. “Openly discuss the challenges of digital overload. Regularly check in with your team, identify stressors, and collaboratively find solutions. If Sarah keeps sending emails at 11:32pm, don't praise her work ethic, rather check why she feels she has to do this.”
4. Relationship building
Relationships are critical to success in the workplace. Therefore, leaders should set clear goals for their relationships and target their approach to achieve those goals, according to Nick Robinson, an executive coach and author of The 9 Types of Difficult People: How to spot them and quickly improve working relationships.
“Leaders can ask themselves, ‘What does this person need from me now?’” suggests Robinson. “For example, they may need your help to keep them focused hard on a task. Or perhaps they need some softer, more supportive input. Or maybe they’ll need your help in seeing the bigger picture of the systems and relationships that comprise your organization.”
5. Supporting neurodivergent colleagues
Around 10%–20% of the global population is considered to be neurodivergent, with diagnoses continuing to rise. That’s why supporting neurodivergent employees will be one of the key skills required of leaders in 2024.
“Leaders need to shift their mindset,” says Leanne Maskell, an ADHD coach, director of ADHD Works and author of ADHD Works at Work.” Instead of molding an employee to a job role, why not make the job role fit the person? If one employee is incredibly creative but dislikes monitoring emails, make adjustments for this so people do what they are best at and enjoy.”
Maskell says that by accommodating individual preferences, not only will leaders have a happier, more engaged workforce, output will be of a higher quality since people will be doing the jobs most suited to them.
She adds: “Understanding ADHD and neurodiversity enables leaders to both better support their people and harness their skills, such as resilience, creativity and the ability to hyper-focus, for the benefit of the wider company.”
6. Showing your social conscience
“It is no longer sufficient for a business leader to use buzzword bingo when talking about the company’s social impact,” says Ildiko Almasi Simsic, a social development specialist and author of What Is A Social Impact? “There is an expectation that leaders are educated and well-informed on the topic and use relevant and appropriate language.”
Simsic argues that stakeholders are more informed than ever about human rights and social impact, so commitments from organizations need to be backed up by policies, plans and strategies. “This increases the pressure on leaders to keep their promises related to sustainability and the social impacts of the company,” she says. “Saying that you are committed to positive social impact is no longer sufficient; stakeholders want to see your actions.”
7. Knowing when to go
“As leaders, we are encouraged to work things through, to persist with passion and perseverance, to keep the vision in mind and be determined in our goals,” says Susan Kahn, a business psychologist, executive coach and author of Reinvent Yourself: psychological insights that will transform your working life. “Yet an equally valuable and less celebrated skill is the ability to know when to go, when to stop and think about what else we could be pursuing. When to acknowledge the end.”
Kahn points out that, as humans, our time on Earth is limited, and we are all going to face the end one day. So, we must make the most of what time we have. “In leadership, we can adopt a similar approach,” she says, “learning from our experience and looking forward to the next challenge, acknowledging that we have done all we can in this role.”
Although there is fear in change, in moving from that which is known to the unpredictable and untested, Kahn believes that this is what lies at the heart of courageous leadership: understanding that there is a time to stay and a time to go.
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