Leadership in a complex world
Being a high-performing retail leader today is harder than ever. The relentless growth of technology and e-commerce, increasing stakeholder expectations and generational changes in the workforce are just three of the critical forces they must deal with.
Being able to retain your composure under this kind of intense scrutiny and yet continue treating others with respect and humanity is the mark of a fine leader.”
Add into the mix the primacy of customer experience, the importance of innovation, and the need to develop, retain and motivate outstanding people, and it’s clear that being a CEO is not for the faint-hearted.
The best leaders today exhibit what we call “beneath-the-surface” qualities, which fit into two categories: capacity — what they are capable of doing — and character — how they respond when dealing with new challenges or the unknown.
Things change so fast in retail that leaders have to be open-minded and curious. They need to expand their network, interact with people inside and outside the business and be willing to listen to different perspectives. Systems thinking — the ability to synthesise and distil critical insights from volumes of information and to consider all angles of a problem — is rapidly becoming an essential leadership trait.
Inspiration matters
Successful leaders establish a culture of trust and are good at aligning people with the strategy. They are keenly in tune with how the team is feeling, and they build adaptability by inspiring and engaging the organisation through purpose, values and culture, guiding people’s behaviours and decisions in a way that is more flexible and responsive to change. This is critical in a highly dynamic environment if you want to move quickly and decisively.
The best leaders today exhibit what we call beneath-the-surface qualities, which fit into two categories: capacity – what they are capable of doing – and character – how they respond when dealing with new challenges or the unknown.”
Leaders inspire by modelling the behaviours they want to see and by raising the energy of their team and the entire organisation through clear, consistent and transparent communication. Leaders who communicate well set the expectations for those who follow them.
There is, however, nowhere to hide for the modern CEO, who is under constant pressure to monitor and make sense of the “always on” information environment. Emboldened and empowered by social media, customers, employees, investors and others are more vocal and can quickly coalesce around controversial topics.
Being able to retain your composure under this kind of intense scrutiny and yet continue treating others with respect and humanity is the mark of a fine leader.
None of the people who posted their comments about Judith McKenna mentioned acquisitions, divestments, growth or shareholder value — not that these things aren’t important. Great leadership is, ultimately, about how you make people feel. Congratulations Judith on your exciting next chapter and see you in Paris!
This article was first published in Retail Week magazine.