No two leadership jobs are the same. Leadership should always lead with empathy, authenticity, and leading by example. What makes a company great to work for are open lines of communication and leading with Integrity.
"Priority one is candor," McChrystal explains. (General Stanley McChrystal and the founder of the McChrystal Group). Challenges during a crisis can shift rapidly and unforeseeably. So, a leader needs latitude to improvise, which requires having the team's faith. "You need to make a reasoned argument to support what you're asking your team to do," McChrystal says. The request can be unconventional, and even out of line with company policy, "but it can't be something they won't buy into."
With the impact of COVID-19, we are seeing a challenge that are impacting organizations today — it is facing the leadership of practically every organization in the world, from governments to Fortune 500 companies to the smallest nonprofit. They are now managing their teams through a crisis with no clear end in sight.
Today's leaders did not ask for a new role. But if history shows us one thing, it is that our greatest leaders emerge from the darkest moments.
Leaders must be visible with their plans, honest with their words, and adaptable with their actions — all while maintaining compassion for the situation and the impact it is having on their team.
In any crisis, there is a natural temptation to wait it out. Today's leaders cannot give in to this instinct. We are facing a perfect storm of economic downturn, social isolation, and a fast-spreading pandemic. The answer to this problem will not suddenly reveal itself; leaders must create solutions. Any leaders who are not already on a war footing and preparing to change their organizations for the foreseeable future fundamentally must start moving today.
First, do not hunker down. Leaders must stand and be visible to their organizations, their communities, and their families.
Second, demonstrate candor and demand it from leaders below you. Organizations can handle bad news and tough times if they feel their leaders are focused on solving the issues at hand. Today’s leaders must be honest with their people to a level that will and should feel uncomfortable.
Third, give up authority. Organizations will need teammates to make independent decisions close to the point of action, not waiting for direction. It is tempting in times of crisis to grab the reins and yank back, but this will be more disruptive than it is helpful.
Finally, be more compassionate than you think you need to be. As the organization has dispersed into remote-work status, the loss of personal interactions will quickly sink in. It will be easy for leaders to overlook or undervalue the fear and stress their people are feeling because of this isolation. All of us learn by watching our teammates, and we gain confidence through informal feedback from our colleagues or bosses. Your organization has lost that person-to-person contact. You must immediately take your culture online, and learn to reinforce camaraderie, esteem, and compassion, via digital platforms.
"Digital leadership" was not in the job description for our generation, but it became a critical skill for all of us to learn in the fast-moving and constantly changing fight.
We are now weathering a once-in-a-hundred-year event, and Americans are hurt — physically, emotionally, financially, and spiritually. Leaders at all levels in society need to embrace the changes this crisis brings rather than struggle against it. Our people need you. It is our moment, and you can rise to it.
McChrystal punctuates the point by quoting a guest speaker.
'People will forgive you for not being the leader you should be but they won't forgive you for not being the leader you claim to be.'
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