Among the five needs as spelled out in research from Accenture, which included 15,600 workers in 10 countries and 15 industries, is recognizing leaders who display compassion and caring. “Many qualified leaders in companies made it to where they are based on a thorough knowledge of business—not necessarily because they excelled at the people side of the equation,” writes Eva Sage-Gavin in the Quartz at Work article. She heads Accenture’s global talent and organization/human potential practice. “But workers told us they want confidence in their company’s ability to navigate the future and they want a leadership team focused on the compassion and care of its people.”
The other four areas include:
- Doing away with unnecessary work
- Trusting employees who are less senior or have no title, but have skill sets (such as digital) that can really help the company excel
- Being a storyteller who can cut through confusion and inspire employees instead of just spouting numbers on profitability and costs
- Not getting stuck on just trying to survive the now
“Reserve two hours per day for work focused on getting your organization and workforce ready for the future,” Sage-Gavin writes. “It will feel like you’re ignoring the urgent, but two hours wisely spent can help keep your company healthy. Many of the best ideas come from adversity and hard times. Giving your people a chance to innovate toward a brighter future helps them remain resilient.”