Organizational Leadership in the Time of Covid-19

Running a successful business is not easy. Even the best business ideas fail if not well directed to achieve the desired results. The reason behind this could be many, but one of the significant factors is the lack of Organizational Leadership. Mentoring a group of people and assembling them in a room to believe and work towards a common goal is tougher than it sounds.

Times have changed, and so the definition of leadership, especially when it comes to Organizational leadership. Leaders nowadays must have good leadership qualities and also wear multiple hats to keep the boat floating.

What is Organizational Leadership?

Organizational leadership is a management approach in which leaders help set strategic objectives for the organization while at the same time inspiring people in the community to execute tasks to achieve those objectives effectively.

Today the shifting work culture demands a lot from the organizational leaders. Technological advancements brought many social collaboration tools to work with, but at the same time, the changing work environment is making it challenging. For example, let's take the case of the covid-19 crisis. We all are aware of the situation and how it doomed the economy. Business went remote, employees suffered from stress, anxiety, and still suffering, many sectors are in a complete loss, and the rest are dealing with its consequences. All of these factors cost business leaders a lot. It has been challenging to keep employees engaged while they work from home. Also, to provide them mental support and motivate them in this difficult time.

But this unprecedented event gave leaders perspectives or at least shown them that to run a successful business, one must adapt with time and learn new skills.

Learn More: 8 Leadership Styles With Their Pros and Cons

Let's discuss the crucial organizational leadership learnings that businesses need today

Be Proactive in Managing Crisis Situations

The covid-19 crisis is not the only event that has hit the market; many will follow. And the only way to overcome such uncertain events is in being prepared for it. The immediate response that organizational leaders have shown in the covid-19 crisis is commendable. But there is more to it. Many organizations have collapsed due to a lack of strategic planning. But it has taught the leaders and entrepreneurs to be proactive and implement immediate action to overcome the obstacles. It is important to note that people follow leaders because they trust them; they believe their persona of calm and focus. And when that is compromised, it becomes difficult to keep things rolling.

Keeping the Community Together

Managing a group of people and making them believe in your vision is a task that not many can handle. And among everything, keeping them together on the same page and boosting employee engagement is equally tricky. Organizations thrive when the members come together and function like a family, believe in the organization's objectives and vision. It is the leader who is the advocate here and also the glue that sticks the organizational community. For that to happen, one must have empathy, listening skills along with strong people management skills. Even though technological advancements have created many streams for us to stay connected, but if the community does not work together and do not have a sense of togetherness, everything will fall apart in the long run.

Be Flexible and Adaptable

Darwin would have rephrased 'survival of the fittest' to 'survival of the adaptable' if he was born in our times. Covid has taught everyone how important it is to adapt quickly and be flexible. The leader's immediate response to the crisis was to work from home and leverage on the telecommuting tools that are available in the market. By far, this is the best they could do. Also, being adaptable means understanding the current working scenario and trends and doing immediate strategic planning to keep the ball rolling. Today's reality is different from that of the last week. Therefore keeping tabs on business trends and changes and being adaptable and flexible could give you the edge over others and help you make the right decisions.

Communicate, Communicate and Communicate

Developing excellent communication skills is absolutely essential to effective leadership. The leader must be able to share knowledge and ideas to transmit a sense of urgency and enthusiasm to others. If a leader can't get a message across clearly and motivate others to act on it, then having a message doesn't even matter. - Gilbert Amelio

One thing that must not be compromised is communication. No one has ever suffered due to over-communication. The more you communicate, the more you get your message straight to the people. Look for new ways to communicate. Communicate as much as you can, especially informally, and make sure people capture you: nothing is worse than a leader who goes away when the chips go down. Be ready to discuss personal problems and business. Be relaxed.

Effective communication can solve many problems that seem impossible to deal with. Organizational leaders who listen and communicate deliberately builds trust and goodwill in the organization.

Also Read: 10 Ways To Develop Organizational Skills Among Employees

This article is written by Braja Deepon Roy. He works as a Content Creator and Digital Marketer at Vantage Circle. He actively participates in the growth of corporate culture and keeps himself updated in this space. For any related queries, contact editor@vantagecircle.com