The world around us is evolving so rapidly that nothing and nobody can survive without adapting to these changing situations. The same rule applies to organisations, and leaders too. In the age of ultra disruption in every industry, the need for businesses and their leaders to evolve and adapt according to the market cannot be overstated.
Take Kodak and Nokia, for instance. Once market leaders in their respective industries, they became extinct quite recently, as they failed to evolve with the changing times. Does this rule of evolving according to the market conditions apply to the people working in these organisations? It does so more than anywhere else!
It is the people of an organisation that are responsible for taking it forward and building it day by day, especially the leaders. It is upon the leaders to adjust their leadership styles and get it in tune with the new approach, to derive the best possible outcomes in all aspects.
The command-control leadership, which was once most prevalent, has seen a downward spiral because of its limitations such as sole decision-making authority, no autonomy to the employees, too much control, etc. The employees of today want to experience work in a manner that improves their morale, gives them the flexibility to experiment with their ideas and more importantly, helps them to be someone who adds value to the final product of a business.
This has resulted in the evolution of three different styles of leadership today. Let’s have a look at them and their components –
3 Kinds of Leaders All Innovative Organisations Comprise Of
1. Entrepreneurial Leaders:
An entrepreneurial leader is a person possessing the perfect combination of all the leadership qualities along with an entrepreneurial mindset. Someone who wants to help achieve the goals of an organisation not simply by dictating what needs to be done, but by being a part of the process in a way that is motivating and aligned with the individual goals of the team members.
An entrepreneurial leader promotes risk-taking behaviour as well as the ability to innovate. Let’s look at the few characteristics that an entrepreneurial leader is made up of:
1.1 Inspire Innovation:
An entrepreneurial leader is constantly coming up with new product ideas or new business models to work in an organisation. They are team builders, who will entice people to come and work on something new. They will not just inspire innovation in this manner, but also seize every opportunity to move such innovation throughout the organisation.
1.2 Involved:
No entrepreneurial leader will be restricted to his work cubicle only. He/she will be on his/her toes always, interacting with the employees, seeing them perform their jobs and suggesting improvements wherever required. He/she is someone who will take time out for a one-on-one conversation with the team quite frequently and understand their work and personal challenges.
1.3 Inspire Growth:
This is perhaps the most important trait of an entrepreneurial leader. He/she will always want to create an atmosphere that induces positivity and growth, a place where people can share their ideas freely, suggest changes if required, encourage opinions and solve problems at their own level. He/she is quick to appreciate a team member, whenever valuable feedback is shared, which inspires people on the team to grow tremendously.
2. Enabling Leaders:
Leaders who know how to make the most out of every situation are enabling leaders. Not just that, they also know how to get the most out of people, enabling the use of their fullest potential. They are the most fluid leaders, who will step up and help in whichever way it’s needed.
They literally enable the people in the frontline to work seamlessly by giving them the resources that they need. They ensure their teams are well connected with people of their industry, by forging some great relationships with them.
Here are some of the traits of an enabling leader, someone who enables people to work at their best levels:
2.1 Extract the Best:
An enabling leader is someone who understands that every employee comes from a different background, their behaviours are moulded out of different experiences, influences and beliefs.
Keeping this in hindsight, an enabling leader will respect and appreciate these differences, combine the different capabilities and put them to the best use for the desired outcomes. They are intelligent enough to connect the dots along the way and enable the employees to perform their best.
2.2 Observant:
An enabling leader possesses the capability to observe and introspect. He will understand the behaviour of his team members, know their appetite for accepting challenges as well as their ability to stretch themselves to achieve goals.
Under an enabling leader, it is impossible for employees to grow lax and become complacent. He will ensure everybody is on their toes, and there is constant growth by helping them hone their skill sets every day.
3. Architecting Leaders:
Architecting leaders are probably at the top-most of the hierarchy of leaders. They create the structure and the culture which is necessary for the entrepreneurial leaders to be able to move forward with their ideas and for enabling leaders to do their jobs. They are the ones who are most aware of the values of an organisation and what it stands for.
Here are some of the characteristics of an architecting leader:
3.1 Change-Makers:
Architecting leaders are literally architecting change within an organisation, not by dictating their terms of changes, but by helping the enabling leaders to bring about the change. They have a reputation of being a caring leader first, before stepping into the role of an architect of the company culture.
3.2 Consult and Act:
They will constantly consult with the members of the community before bringing about any changes in the work area. It is their priority to help those around them understand why going ahead or adopting a particular change would be a good idea.
They will be keen on listening to people who don’t agree with the changes and respond to them.
3.3 Strategize:
An architecting leader will build a coherent organisational strategy by combining new and innovative product ideas together in the market. They have their eye on the global market trends, technological trends, economic trends etc, as well as someone who is in constant touch with the respected senior leaders within the industry to chart out a strategy that works for the good of the organisation.
Any innovative organisation that needs to sustain must possess entrepreneurial leaders, enabling leaders and architecting leaders to attain success in the truest of sense as well as stay relevant to the current market.
