EP146: 8 Must-Have Capabilities for Leaders – 2024
IMPACTFUL LEADERS HAVE LOTS OF SKILLS
Are you developing the most important ones?
Enjoy!
Listen Here:
(The notes below are only a brief bullet point summary of what is discussed in the podcast. Be sure to listen to get all of the goodness! If you would like a full transcription of the episode, please send an email request to: angie@angie-robinson.com. We’d be happy to provide that!)
This week, I headed over to Harvard Business Review (HBR) to see what was trending right now. At the top was a recent study: 8 Must-Have Capabilities for Leaders Worldwide (2024).
This could be a timely topic as we round out 2024 and head into establishing development goals for 2025!
Here is the beginning description of this study:
“Based on insights from our 2024 global research study involving 1,100 senior leaders responsible for leadership development, we identified the top 8 critical leadership capabilities to meeting business needs in today’s dynamic environment.
These capabilities are shaping the future of leadership and guiding organizations toward sustained success. To ensure your leaders are equipped with the skills needed to thrive, download our infographic and stay informed on the latest trends in leadership development.”
I’m not sure that I agree that these are the top 8 capabilities – that’s for the researchers to figure out. However, they are important capabilities, none the less. I’m here to share them with you and let you decide for yourself.
The Structure
For each of the capabilities - I will:
provide the definition
share my thoughts on the inside out approach to developing these capabilities
provide questions to assess your current strengths and areas of improvement and use as a basis for development and/or leadership coaching
NOTE: Taking an "inside-out" approach to these leadership capabilities means that you would first focus on your internal mindset, self-awareness, and personal beliefs before addressing how they show up externally in your leadership practices. It involves understanding and cultivating inner qualities, emotional intelligence, and personal alignment to influence how you engage with others and work through challenges. This approach is the differentiator to your leadership impact and success!
From Harvard Business Review
The 8 Must-Have Capabilities for Leaders
** according to study by HBR - 2024
1 - Connecting employees to organization’s purpose
Definition: A leader’s ability to help employees see how their individual work contributes to the larger mission and goals of the organization. Leaders need to ensure that employees understand the "why" behind their efforts and how their contributions align with the company’s overarching purpose.
Inside-Out Approach: You, the leader, must first connect deeply with the organization's purpose on a personal level and be clear on your own ‘why”. Do you fully understand and believe in the mission? Does it align with your own why, values and personal goals? Once aligned, you can authentically communicate that purpose to their team, naturally inspiring others to connect to the mission in a meaningful way. You can help them connect their why to the organization, answer any questions and help them see how they're work contributes.
Reflection Questions:
Am I clear on my own why?
Do I feel truly connected to the organization’s purpose and mission?
How well do I communicate the organization’s mission and vision to my team?
Can each team member articulate how their role contributes to the overall success of the organization?
How often do I link daily tasks or projects back to the organization's purpose in conversations or meetings?
2 - Emotional and social intelligence
Definition: This is the ability to recognize, understand, and manage your own emotions as well as the emotions of others. It is NOT acting as though emotions don’t belong or you don’t have them. It involves empathy, effective communication, relationship-building, and responding appropriately to social cues in workplace interactions.
Inside-Out Approach: Start with self-awareness—understanding your emotional triggers, how you react under stress, uncertainty, overwhelm, joy, (and all the emotions) and how your emotions influence your decisions and interactions. By regulating your own emotions and practicing empathy, you can create more harmonious relationships with others, better understanding your team’s needs and emotions.
Reflection Questions:
How effectively do I recognize and regulate my own emotions in stressful or other situations?
How often do I check in on the emotional well-being of my team members?
How do I handle feedback—both giving and receiving—in emotionally charged situations?
How comfortable do employees feel approaching me with personal or professional concerns?
3 - Managing conflict
Definition: Effective leaders must be able to navigate and resolve disagreements or tensions within teams. This includes identifying the root causes of conflicts, facilitating productive conversations, and finding solutions that align with organizational values while maintaining healthy working relationships.
Inside-Out Approach: You must first acknowledge your own communication and conflict style. Bring awareness to whether you avoid conflict, react too quickly or embrace it. When you are aware of your tendencies, you can approach conflicts with a calm, open mindset, allowing you to resolve tensions fairly and effectively while fostering trust among team members. And – you gain understanding other people’s communication and personality preferences.
Reflection Questions:
Am I aware of and do I leverage my own communication and personality preferences?
Am I aware of others’ communication and personality preferences and do I adapt to connect?
How often do conflicts arise within my team, and how effectively do I address them?
Do I take a proactive or reactive approach to conflict resolution?
How comfortable am I with having difficult conversations when necessary?
What processes do I have in place to mediate conflicts and restore relationships?
4 - Managing employees' stress/burnout
Definition: Leaders must help employees manage workload stress and avoid burnout by providing support, creating a healthy work-life balance, offering resources, and fostering a culture that prioritizes well-being and mental health.
Inside-Out Approach: You should reflect on how you manage your own stress and whether you are modeling healthy behaviors. Do you prioritize self-care? Are you aware of your own burnout signals? When you understand and manage your own stress, you are better equipped to empathize with employees, offer genuine support, and implement wellness practices that benefit the entire team.
Reflection Questions:
How often do I check in on the workload and well-being of my employees?
What signs of stress or burnout do I recognize in myself and my team?
What resources and support systems are available to employees who are feeling overwhelmed?
How do I promote a healthy work-life balance within my team?
5 - Managing polarization
Definition: In today’s increasingly divided world, leaders need to be skilled at addressing polarization in the workplace. This includes managing diverse opinions, fostering inclusivity, and ensuring that differences don’t lead to division or disengagement, but rather constructive dialogue and respect for varying perspectives.
Inside-Out Approach: You need to explore their own biases, assumptions, and openness to different viewpoints. Do this is without judgement. We all have biases and our brains love to jump to assumptions. Get clear on how this impacts you. With self-awareness in place, you can foster inclusive dialogue, navigate polarizing issues, and ensure that you ead with fairness, objectivity, and respect for diverse opinions.
Reflection Questions:
Am I clear about my own cognitive biases?
How comfortable am I with addressing differing opinions and managing tensions in the workplace?
What steps do I take to create an inclusive environment where diverse views are respected?
How do I encourage constructive dialogue between employees with conflicting views?
How do I ensure that disagreements or polarization do not negatively impact team morale and productivity?
6 - Providing clarity/direction
Definition: Leaders should offer clear guidance and direction, especially in times of uncertainty. This capability involves being transparent about goals, expectations, and priorities, ensuring that employees are aligned and focused on the right objectives.
Inside-Out Approach: You must first have personal clarity—understanding your own vision, goals, and priorities. You need to be clear on the organizations goals and priorities and on what you want to achieve and how you want to lead. Once you have internal clarity, you can provide clear and consistent guidance to your team, setting a strong direction and ensuring alignment with organizational goals.
Reflection Questions:
How clear am I when communicating goals, expectations, and priorities to my team?
How do I ensure that all team members understand their roles and responsibilities?
How often do I check in to make sure my team has clarity on their objectives?
What processes do I use to realign the team when goals or circumstances change?
7 - Managing contract/gig workers (and hybrid work arrangements)
Definition: With the rise of the gig economy and remote/hybrid work, leaders must be adept at managing a workforce that includes freelance, contract, and temporary workers and teams that work in remote arrangements. This involves ensuring that these workers are integrated into teams effectively, maintaining strong communication, and managing their performance in a way that supports organizational goals.
Inside-Out Approach: You should reflect on how you perceive and value contract/gig workers and remote employees. Understand how you see these workers as integral parts of the team and explore whether you treat them with fairness and respect? When you value these employees internally, it will naturally ensure that they are integrated into the team effectively, you communicate clearly, and you provide equal opportunities for collaboration and contribution.
Reflection Questions:
How well do I integrate contract/gig and remote workers into the team and ensure they feel included?
What processes do I have in place to manage communication and performance for non-permanent or remote/hybrid employees?
How do I measure the effectiveness of contract/gig workers and remote employees in contributing to the overall goals of the team?
How do I manage the balance between treating all employee statuses fairly while maintaining different expectations?
8 - Appropriate risk-taking
Definition: Leaders need to be able to evaluate when it is appropriate to take risks, weighing potential benefits against potential downsides. This involves being strategic, encouraging innovation, and creating an environment where calculated risks are supported and failure is viewed as a learning opportunity.
Inside-Out Approach: You should start by assessing your own relationship with risk - determining if you are risk-averse, too impulsive, or somewhere in-between. With an understanding of your risk tolerance, you can encourage calculated risks within your team, fostering innovation while balancing the potential for failure with thoughtful decision-making.
Reflection Questions:
What is my own mindset around risk? What is my risk tolerance?
How do I assess when to take a calculated risk versus when to play it safe?
How comfortable am I with allowing my team to take risks and potentially fail?
What processes do I use to evaluate the potential benefits and downsides of risks?
How do I foster a culture of innovation where risk-taking is encouraged but measured?I must say:
At the Foundation
As a foundation for all capabilities is always self-awareness and ensuring an environment of psychological safety. And, regardless of the skills and capabilities – taking an inside out approach is the most impactful way for developing and exceling.
An "inside-out" approach means that your internal work—self-awareness, mindset, values, and emotional intelligence—becomes the foundation for how you lead externally. By focusing first on developing yourself from within, you are better positioned to positively influence your teams, navigate challenges with greater clarity, and create an environment of trust and growth. This kind of leadership leads to deeper connections and authenticity, as it emerges naturally from personal alignment rather than external expectations alone. It’s magic!
What Do You Think?
Are any of these must-have capabilities on your development plan?
Head over to my Instagram account and send me a DM - - let me know what you come up with!
Links
8 Must-Have Capabilities for Leaders 2024: HBR Report
Please leave a review in Apple Podcasts + share with a friend
It will help others find the podcast - the more leaders we can impact - the better our workplaces and lives will be!
Schedule a FREE Discovery Call
Click here to schedule some time - let’s talk about how we can work together through one-on-one coaching, Insights Discovery workshops or other leadership development work!