This is the second of 2 articles addressing the top challenges leaders are facing today. When Mike Sipple Jr. was asked what he would list as the top challenges in today’s ever-changing marketplace, his first comment was, “CHANGE is the new NORMAL!”
He continued by sharing this perspective…
- Employee engagement. Everyone is talking about it…very few are taking action. Leaders need to ensure their best people are highly engaged and have a sense of security, ownership, camaraderie and excitement for what their organization is about and the impact they are making. Today too many leaders have one foot in and one foot out of the proverbial revolving door. If leaders can get their employees truly engaged and ignite passion by involving them in the business and nurturing relationships both professionally and personally, it will help minimize disengagement and the revolving door syndrome.
- Dealing with uncertainty and communication. Leaders need to have clear and concise communication to build trust and engage and motivate their employees, yet so few do this as they may not be 100% certain about the details. We encourage our clients to communicate versus leaving their leaders in the blind. By maintaining a high level of commitment to communicate, they create more security, resulting in higher levels of trust for employees. As Stephen M.R. Covey states in his book Speed of Trust*: ”…trust is the one thing that changes everything. You want to make an impact on your organization and the leaders who run it….focus on building trust.”
- Leaders need to look at and consider new ways of doing things. They should ask, Who are we? Who do we sell to? What should we focus on? They may need to look at distribution channels, sales channels, client diversification and more. It’s possible that changes need to be made – perhaps changing the mix of product/service offerings, remaining with core expertise, forming alliances with other companies to outsource/partner to deliver the best quality and value to clients. Strengths should be considered and creatively leverage.