Before the pandemic, Jane was a well-respected CFO at a pharmaceutical company who drove an hour each way to the office. When the COVID-19 crisis hit, Jane – like millions of others – was forced to work from home. A silver lining was the extra time she had to spend with her grandchildren. As restrictions eased, however, the CEO wanted her back in the building full-time. She had forgotten how many hours the daily commute consumed and tried to negotiate for a couple of days a week at home. But he refused. So she quit. He was shocked.Â
What the CEO had failed to realize is that the pandemic has heralded a permanent shift in the way people want to be led. While several high-profile executives – among them Elon Musk, the Tesla CEO and owner of X (formerly Twitter) – have tried to revive an authoritarian style of leadership, this is unlikely to lead to results in the long term. Employees have become accustomed to a more compassionate and empathetic workplace. They want to be treated as people, not just workers, and those who don’t feel bonded to their team, or a sense of purpose, are more likely to cut ties. Â
Drawing on my experience of working with hundreds of executives across different sectors, here are seven ways in which the art of leadership has evolved as a result of the pandemic – changes that I believe leaders should adopt as permanent traits, if they have not done so already:Â
1. Collaboration over command and control Â
While the hierarchical “command and control” management model where leaders made decisions and issued orders was already dead long before COVID, the pandemic well and truly hammered the nails into the coffin. This was the case for a restaurant chain with over 4,000 franchises across the US. Prior to the pandemic, top management dictated everything – right down to how often the toilets should be cleaned in individual restaurants. Employees felt they were treated like children, morale was low, and business was in decline. When COVID hit, the situation worsened. To avoid bankruptcy, they hired a new CEO who implemented a different strategy – to give back power to the managers. Emboldened to make changes to the menu and introduce special offers based on their knowledge of the local area, managers achieved a turnaround within six months. In today’s uncertain economic environment, collaborative leadership that fosters innovation, creativity, and engagement, will ultimately lead to better results.Â
2. Leadership as a relationshipÂ
Musk may think it’s fine to issue demands with an iron fist, but people are fed up with being told what to do and view their work as solely transactional. This has led to a collapse in the traditional hierarchy between manager and employee. Instead, leadership is now viewed as a dynamic relationship between leaders and their followers. A great leader will build strong relationships based on trust, mutual respect, and effective communication to work with and influence others. They actively listen to their teams, solicit feedback, and create an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued and heard. Â