Leader, Emerging in the age of disruption

The term “age of disruption” is popping up more than ever in all contexts. Associated with this concept you may have a lot of questions. What does it mean to live in the age of disruption? how is it going to affect my business? what can I do as a leader to navigate through these complex times we’re living in? and furthermore, how can my team and I be reinforced in this new reality? Read this carefully. You may find some hints

Are we living in a constant disruption? Or is this just fantasy?

Disruption is defined in the Cambridge Dictionary as “the action of completely changing the traditional way that an industry or market operates by using new methods or technology”, so we can assume that living in the age of disruption will lead us to cycles of constant change.

And it might be true. The world is already changing constantly. Just in the first half of 2020 we already faced humongous forest fires in Australia, the first state leaving European Union through the Brexit, a crash in the markets in the Black Monday event, a global health pandemic, riots related to racism problems all over the world… and we are just halfway through thethe year.

How can this have an impact on the business? Ever-changing demands of the customers, the evolution of new technologies (and the emergence of new ones), uncovered demands and business niches and other factors led us to product and service restructuring, market repositioning and a constant urge to feel like we are adapting.

And what is more important, how can we as business leaders position ourselves for good and align our business needs with this constant change? Here are four pillars that should help you succeed.

Four pillars to reinforce you as a leader in the age of disruption

Be a constant learner: the ability and willingness to learn will be a key factor to navigate at this time. Being curious and determined to understand how things around you work and what potential do they have. Don’t be afraid to ask “why?” as much as possible. Talk to people, watch youtube movies, read about things you never read before, learn a new skill. experiment, keep the feedback loops short, perform feedback sessions with those who do the work.

Be a grounded optimist: anticipate the best but ground your thoughts in reality in a healthy way. Take your emotions and reformulate them into actionable thoughts that lead you to realistic solutions.

Be ready to anticipate to change: don’t take the luxury of sitting and see what happens. As a leader, your responsibility is also related to being the one reading the context and having an eye on what’s going to happen next. When making plans, try to uncover the hidden assumptions in the plan and talk about what you will do if they do not actually realize. Is the market really going to stay the same? Are customers really going to behave that way? etc. collect real feedback all the time from all organization levels

Be antifragile: antifragility is the property of increasing capabilities to thrive as a result of shock, attacks or failures. Embracing an antifragile mindset, where we not only “bounce back” after a negative event, but we also get reinforced, is key in this volatile reality we’re living in. Be ready to thrive in ever-changing scenarios and avoid risks that, if lost, would obliterate you completely.

Want to be a leader in these volatile times? Put into practice those pieces of advice. Want to do it effectively? Just write to us.

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