Staying Composed Under Pressure: How Leaders Set the Tone in Tough Situations

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by David Finkle

 

When challenges arise, one of the most critical leadership skills is the ability to stay calm and composed. High-pressure situations are inevitable in any business, but how you handle them can set the tone for your entire team. The way you respond during a crisis or unexpected challenge affects not only the immediate outcome but also your team’s confidence in your leadership. This article will explore the importance of composure and provide actionable strategies for maintaining calm in difficult moments.

The Importance of Staying Composed

Pressure can reveal a lot about your leadership style. When things go wrong, whether it’s a missed deadline or an unexpected issue, your team looks to you for guidance. Leaders who stay composed in these moments send a message that challenges are manageable, and that there’s a path forward. On the other hand, leaders who panic or react impulsively create an environment of uncertainty, which can demotivate their team.

Remaining calm is about more than keeping your emotions in check–it’s about maintaining control of the situation. When your team sees you approaching a challenge with clarity, they feel reassured and ready to focus on solutions rather than getting stuck in the problem.

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3 Core Leadership Principles from the Tech Industry

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By Rick Chavez

 

Two worlds of business are colliding. On one side is the world of incumbents, boasting a rich legacy of well-fortified brands and businesses. On the other is the high-velocity world of technology, exemplified by companies like Apple and Microsoft, which has patterns that can be instructive for incumbents. Having lived and worked in both worlds, I discussed three principles that can help business leaders grapple with complexity and uncertainty in my recent TEDxWalden Pond talk, “Thriving In Turbulent Times.”

 1. Understand mega-trends that shape disruption

The true cause of disruption is a convergence of mega-trends. Some are trends in behavior — what is “it” that people want to pull into their lives? Far better to unpack the “jobs to be done,” problems that matter (that is, ones where customers have genuine desire for progress). Then there are societal trends — what will society accept or reject? Often regulation or mounting pressure for regulatory reform will signal societal trends, and technology evolves in concert with those trends. Technology, while triggering broad fascination and investor fervor, should be framed as an enabler, not the main driver, for other forces underway that are tipping the world toward some new normal.

So rather than immediately training attention internally on existing assets and products, companies need to start with a time for observation, for understanding relevant mega-trends, and asking crisp questions about the course and speed of forces at work. Formulating the right questions is much more important than pushing for answers.

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How Aligned Leadership Teams Drive Growth

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by Robin Camarote

 

The secret to sustainable growth is getting everyone on the same page.

Growth can be fulfilling for you as a leader and is essential for expanding your impact and serving more people. Yet achieving predictable growth is often elusive, particularly when it’s a group project for your leadership team.

Many organizations I work with have a familiar structure: a CEO supported by a C-suite, under which are business leaders managing different accounts or service lines. Typically, these teams gather once or twice a year to strategize. Each leader then sets their division’s priorities and dives into work — often heads-down, relatively isolated. While teams meet plenty, these discussions sound more like a brief out from a collection of individual contributors versus a real team huddle.

This diffuse, siloed approach takes people in different directions and out of alignment. They then miss critical opportunities to support each other and maximize growth.

For CEOs, this can be incredibly frustrating. They often tell me they feel their team is underutilized. It’s not that they’re not busy. Everyone is incredibly focused on their own work, their staff, and what they believe to be their problems.

The fix lies in intentional, regular team alignment.

When leadership teams align around the “5 Ps” of growth — purpose, positioning, people, pipeline, and promise — they operate more effectively.

1. Purpose

Define the purpose of growth. Achieving this starts with defining why growth is crucial for your specific business. What’s your purpose? What opportunities does growth open up for your customers, employees, industry, and community?

2. Positioning

Now clarify your market positioning. Understand what sets you apart from competitors and why customers choose you. This clarity helps in making informed decisions about which opportunities to pursue.

3. People

Discuss the people aspect next. Beyond roles and titles, consider the skills your team possesses and the gaps you need to fill to stay competitive. Decide whether to build skills internally, hire new talent, or partner with others.

4. Pipeline

Once your people are in place, focus on your pipeline. Ensure every leader knows what’s in the pipeline and the likelihood of winning these opportunities. Together, determine concrete actions to enhance these odds, with clear roles and timelines to boost accountability.

5. Promise

Finally, address the promise. Encourage each team member to articulate their personal commitment to growth. This process not only clarifies individual contributions but also fosters a sense of accountability.

Aligning your leadership team around these five elements simplifies complex challenges and enhances effectiveness. It fosters a stronger team dynamic and a shared commitment to growth, making the daunting task of business expansion both easier and more rewarding.

This post originally appeared at inc.com.

Harnessing AI: Best practices for GenAI adoption to drive company growth

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BY Mark Childs

 

The integration of generative AI (GenAI) tools into professional services is more than an upgrade—it’s a transformative journey that reshapes how organizations operate, innovate, and deliver value to clients. Here are a few best practices that can guide any organization through a successful AI adoption.

ENABLING THE ORGANIZATION

Adopting GenAI tools involves a strategic alignment with organizational goals and a thorough understanding of its current and future capabilities. The first step is to ensure that all stakeholders—leadership, learning and development, sales, and delivery—understand the benefits and functionalities of AI technology adoption.

Tailored training sessions are crucial, focusing on practical applications and easing the tool into daily workflows to maximize acceptance and utility. Once your company is aligned, it’s one step closer to effective adoption and unlocking significant growth.

COMMON CHALLENGES AND HOW TO OVERCOME THEM

1. Approach value realistically.

While AI technologies offer an immense value opportunity, realizing that value entails cultural readiness for change. Measuring value requires a holistic view combining qualitative and quantitative insights to guide initial and ongoing adoption strategies. Furthermore, demonstrating tangible benefits through pilot projects to identify role-specific needs helps identify the highest-value opportunities.

2. Prepare for resistance to change.

Resistance from staff is a common hurdle. Addressing this involves clear communication about AI as an enhancer, not a replacer of human skills. One approach to this includes applying a human-centered design that enables companies to address employee concerns. Creating spaces for sharing best practices and lessons learned helps embed the change deeply within teams and workflows.

Adoption is not a linear path, but the overall journey is worth it with persistence and an open ear for feedback.  Continue reading →

The 6 Things That Make Managers Hate Their Jobs Less

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by Sarah Lynch

Here’s what business leaders and experts say can make a positive difference for overwhelmed and burned-out managers.

Managers are overwhelmed, but a few crucial changes could help them enjoy — or, at the very least, not resent — their jobs.

Since the pandemic, “no one’s job has changed more” than the manager‘s, says Joe Galvin, chief research officer at executive coaching organization Vistage. Many were tasked with managing hybrid workforces for the first time. They had to scramble to find and retain workers during the Great Resignation. And they’re feeling the brunt of economic headwinds, too, he says.

About three-quarters of HR leaders say that managers are “overwhelmed by the growth of their responsibilities,” according to Gartner, the research and consulting firm. This year, almost half (47 percent) of managers were burned out, according to LinkedIn — more than individual contributors or directors.

And yet, managers play a critical role in their organizations, determining 70 percent of the “variance in team engagement,” Gallup has found. Fortunately, there are shifts that can make managers’ jobs easier and more satisfying, according to business leaders and management experts.

1. Fewer reports

Forty-four percent of middle managers agree that “organizational bureaucracy” can negatively impact their roles, says Emily Field, McKinsey partner and author of Power to the Middle: Why Managers Hold the Keys to the Future of Work. But CEOs can help get rid of the red tape.

For instance, when it comes to the monthly organizational reports that managers so often must complete, CEOs should consider: “Do we read those reports?” Field says. “What are the reports we can simply delete? And for the reports that actually are beneficial, how do we create them as efficiently as possible?”

It’s not just paperwork that can pile up. Generally speaking, when leaders are coming up with strategies to help managers, that can often manifest in more work for managers, Field says — and this should be avoided. “Instead of asking, ‘What can I add to help my managers?’ ask, ‘What can I take away to help my managers?'”

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