Last year, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) presented a report in which it stated that nearly 75 per cent of organisations in England were reporting a deficit in management leadership skills. Managing Director of The Forum Corporation’s Europe, Middle East and Africa Division Graham Scrivener says that this deficit is one of the main contributors to the productivity gap with countries such as the US, Germany and Japan.

Since leadership is key at all levels in any organisation, here are five trends which, if adopted, will have a huge impact on any business – mainly because the value of leadership is given greater importance.

 

Uncertainty makes leadership harder but more important

There is no doubt that the economic and business environment this year is still unpredictable. In a global survey of 700 leaders, 72 per cent reported a high or extremely high increase in uncertainty within their companies. This research, explains Scrivener, has found that twice as many business leaders believe that “the ability to change” is one of today’s key challenges, compared with 2010. This increased feeling of uncertainty can cause employees to have a lack of confidence in one another and can also have an effect on the change programmes implemented. This demonstrates the importance of the leadership role, especially the importance of a leader who succeeds in engaging the team he manages. 

 

The development of first-line leaders is key

First-line leaders make up 50-60 per cent of an organisation’s management and, on average, directly supervise as much as 80 per cent of the workforce. Management represents the most important group of leaders in an organisation since managers are involved in all aspects of the organisation – from the strategy adapted to customer satisfaction. Scrivener goes further by saying that the development of first-line leaders – the first level of management – should be a priority on any company’s agenda.

It should be borne in mind that first-line leaders are generally promoted to their position because of their technical skills and knowledge, but it is the skills of their subordinates that determine the effectiveness and success of their leadership role. According to research carried out by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, 85 per cent of respondents claimed there was a lack of people skills among first-line leaders. Scrivener says that this research indicated that a company should invest a minimum of one-third of its total leadership development budget in these employees.

 

People-leadership skills are vital for all employees

Scrivener further elaborates that their research also shows that people-leadership skills, meaning the ability to lead people effectively, is three to four times more important to a leader’s career success than other skills. Better performing companies report a much higher adoption of people-leadership practices.

 

Scrivener believes that effective leaders should be trained to become experts in four key people-leadership areas:

1. Thinking like a leader

2. Coaching your team

3. Getting results through others

4. Engaging employees

 

Employee engagement still critical

According to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace study, organisations with employees who are engaged tend to have significantly lower absenteeism rates, staff turnover figures and accidents, whilst their productivity levels and profitability are much higher. The importance of engagement is once again stressed, Scrivener points out: a leader can make a big impact on the team only if individual members are engaged. 

 

More thought should be given to training requirements

Just as it is important for every workplace to have employees who are engaged in their work, the employees themselves should be more involved in the elements of their training. The same global survey found that 91 per cent of respondents felt they had too much work, while 75 per cent said they had little or no capacity to do more work with less time. Employees do not want to attend a one-off training day if they are already working at full capacity and yet are expected to still manage their regular workload.

Employees will appreciate learning about issues that are relevant, practical and challenging. The role of the leader is to offer full support for the training given to the employees, not only by letting the employee undertake the training but also, if required, by offering help in coping with the daily workload.

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