Leading in a Complex Global Context
I did some research about global trends and challenges and how they will change the way we will lead in the future. The answers I found explain why we sometimes feel that we’re in a perpetual state of disequilibrium.
The Leader of the Future
This description was adapted from the sources listed below.
The Leader of the Future is a globally aware, fast-learning, socially and financially responsible leader with amazing digital skills and social media savvy, who is agile, resilient and collaborative, demonstrates exceptional thinking skills, deals well with uncertainty, has connections across disciplines, synthesizes information easily to find meaning, learns quickly and continually, adapts to solving new and complex problems and meeting competing demands, is environmentally responsible, open and transparent, internationally mobile, with a global view and local cultural sensitivity, who cares about others, behaves and leads ethically, holds people accountable while helping to develop their leadership potential, serves as a change agent promoting responsible leadership, values differences, and engages diverse collections of employees, customers and communities in a common purpose.
Improving Our Leadership
Consider these questions:
1. What does this business leader of the future do well that I need to learn?
2. How will learning in those areas make me a more responsible leader?
3. How will I engage the other leaders in the organization in learning with me?
4. How will making these changes in leadership help us survive and thrive?
Sources:
Key Global Trends Impacting Leadership Hay Group Press Release About “Leadership 2030” Report
The Leader of the Future: Ten skills to begin developing now Greatleadershipbydan.com
Emerging Leadership Trends Rick Lash, Hay Group on YouTube
The 2020 Leader: Attributes for Success in the 2020 Workplace Jeanne Meister at skillsoft.com
Emerging Leadership Journeys Spring 2011, Regent.edu
Shaping Health Systems Network: Emerging Leadership in a Global Context Center for Innovation in Health Management, UK
Emerging Leadership Issues Lev Lafayette, doctoral candidate at the Ashworth Centre for Social Theory
Future Work Skills 2020 Research Institute for the Future
For more, see new book 7 Lenses and the 21 Question Assessment: How Current is My Message About Ethics?
2014 Axiom Business Book Award Winner
About 7 Lenses
Info@LeadinginContext.com @leadingincontxt @7Lenses
© 2012 Leading in Context LLC
Leading in Context 
Graham, I have responded to your question with a new post called “Leading Ethically Through Complexity: How to Prepare Leaders.” There’s so much more to say on the subject that this is just a starting point. Thank you for your insightful comment!
https://leadingincontext.com/2012/04/18/leading-ethically-through-complexity/
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Graham and Alex, Your questions about how to develop the skills we’ll need and how to support this type of leader are so good that I’m planning to respond with some ideas in future blog posts. Thanks so much for raising these timely questions!
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Great article, what kind of opportunities should a person with desiring to be a leader look for to become a future business leader. Even more specifically, how can women (who are 60% of the managers) avail themselves of opportunties to gain the skills you found essential?
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Thank you for your article. I agree with your Leader of the Future. How is this leader ‘programmed’ to be the ethical leader? When they face dilemmas what do they do and how do they decide what to do. The environment around them will affect their decision making. The important thing for me is how do we support these type of leaders in a world that does not always have those leaders in the right places. Or if we do, they have to be so careful.
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