How should leaders manage the increased pressure they face following the last couple of years of upheaval?
How can leaders be the catalyst for change and evolve the culture within their organisations?
Sally Earnshaw, Managing Director of Culture Change Consulting at Gallagher, tells Amelia Brand in our latest podcast about the skills and capabilities required to be a modern leader in this day and age.
“IT IS THE MOST RIDICULOUS TIME FOR CHANGE, AND THEREFORE, THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A TIME THAT DEMANDS ON LEADERS HAVE BEEN GREATER THAN NOW. ORGANISATIONS ARE NOW HAVING TO PIVOT THEIR STRATEGY QUITE OFTEN, EVERY SIX OR TWELVE MONTHS.”
– SALLY EARNSHAW
Demands on leadership have never been greater: against a backdrop of digitisation and globalisation, Sally outlines that leaders need to do four specific things well.
Firstly, leaders need to be able to create clarity, helping to turn strategy into a memorable narrative that connects people to the changes ahead.
Secondly, leaders need to create the climate where people are trusted, and blockers are removed.
Thirdly, leaders must be able to win hearts and inspire mindsets.
And lastly, leaders must be able to encourage behaviours that they wish to see, understanding how to tap into people in order to get the best out of them.
“THE WAYS OF COMMUNICATING AS A LEADER ARE NOW DIFFERENT, AS ARE EMPLOYEE DEMANDS WITHIN THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE.”
– SALLY EARNSHAW
Sally also specifically focuses on the concept of ‘resilience’, both in leadership and on an organisational level. Many organisations focus on assessing resilience as part of their recruitment process to ensure that they are bringing resilient people in.
However, Sally believes that resilience is a teachable skill, and outlines how one can go about growing resilience inside an organisation.
“THE ONE THING THAT BINDS ALL SECTORS TOGETHER IS WHAT YOU MIGHT CALL ‘CULTURE.’ IT INVOLVES EVERYTHING INCLUDING HOW WE WORK AS ONE ORGANISATION ACROSS DIFFERENT GEOGRAPHIES. RETAINING YOUR CULTURE AGAINST THAT BACKDROP OF REAL TRANSIENCE AND CHANGE IS IMPORTANCE.”
– SALLY EARNSHAW
To listen to the full podcast, click here now
Amelia Brand is the Editor for HRreview, and host of the HR in Review podcast series. With a Master’s degree in Legal and Political Theory, her particular interests within HR include employment law, DE&I, and wellbeing within the workplace. Prior to working with HRreview, Amelia was Sub-Editor of a magazine, and Editor of the Environmental Justice Project at University College London, writing and overseeing articles into UCL’s weekly newsletter. Her previous academic work has focused on philosophy, politics and law, with a special focus on how artificial intelligence will feature in the future.
