2020 Leadership Lens

2020 is here! We all know the term, New Year, new you. 2020 is the beginning of a new decade! In 2000, we were investigating this new generation of millennials and what that meant to the workplace. In 2010, we were looking at millennials in leadership and the possibility of Generation Z joining the workforce. 

Now we have arrived in 2020, and I reflect on leadership going into a new decade and what will happen over the next ten years. Companies will have a variety of initiatives; some technology-based, some will be around cost savings initiatives, and others will be about increasing revenue. I often wonder where leadership and leadership development initiatives fall within organizations. Is it important? Is it over-analyzed? To me, the answer to both of those questions is yes.

I believe that the most significant opportunity for companies is to place value on leadership and leadership development the same as they do revenue, cost savings, and technology. As we move into a new decade, I believe there will be an even stronger emphasis on leadership development. To me, it starts with your leadership hiring and how much intention you put into place around leadership and leadership development. 

As you reflect on this topic for your organization, the questions to begin dialogue are: 

1. How does your current leadership engage in leadership development? 
2. If you do not have leadership development in place, what are three initial steps to incorporate into the culture? 
3. How do you hire leaders in your organization? Are there leadership competencies embedded in your interview process? If not, you can use the existing hiring competencies and develop components into your leadership hiring. 
4. How do you track your ROI on leadership development? If today you are not following the ROI, how do you begin to incorporate discussions on leadership development in executive team meetings?

We are at the beginning of Q1, which, in my experience, allows for a New Year, a new goal. Use this new decade as an opportunity to focus on leadership and leadership development, knowing the impact that great leaders can make. 

Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible. – Tony Robbins