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You may have heard that the future looks bleak for leaders. As digital transformation storms across organizations, much of what leaders did looks replaceable. AI is coming for your middle management.
But is the role of ‘leader of humans’ really in jeopardy? Will digital tools replace most of what leaders do today? Or will there still be work for team leaders?
Let’s look at the impact that digital transformation will have on leadership.
Things leaders will stop doing after a full digital transformation
Annual reviews. Ok, maybe this is hopeful. But if our dashboards update by the second, isn’t it absurd that we judge human performance annually? Performance reviews aren’t going away, but they will be more frequent and less subjective. Scott Burns, CEO of Structural, agrees that annual reviews are one of at least five concepts that won’t exist in five years.
Fill out paper forms. Digital leaders should do a lot less paperwork. There will still be digital forms to approve, but automated processes will convert that to clicking a button on a few exceptional cases.
Monitor employee activities. While digital transformation might mean more opportunities to track employee activity, let’s hope these are short lived due to their time waste and general ickiness.
Things leaders will start doing after a full digital transformation
Learn new software. In 10 years you will be using different software than you do now, likely from a company that doesn’t even exist. Software is in an explosive era, and it won’t stop anytime soon. For the foreseeable future, leaders must adjust to new software.
Use digital tools to create systems. Leaders need to be proficient with no-code tools to create their own project boards, workflows, and other systems. IT teams won’t be able to come to the rescue every time you want an automated process built.
Enforce a communication plan. Communication has always been complex, but digital tools have made it much worse. Without a plan, your team will drown in communication and nothing will get done. Leaders will also need to use many channels to get a message across. GitLab says that, “When you feel like you are repeating yourself, you probably just hit enough.”
Add emoji to communication. Emoji and GIFs have added a level of depth and richness to text communication that there’s no going back from.
Build video mute button best practices. Surprisingly, Peter Drucker doesn’t have much to say on this important issue.
Is that it?
You may notice that this list is pretty small. On the surface, digital transformation doesn’t impact leaders very much.
However, the true impact of a digital workplace is in what it exposes. The difference between good and bad leaders is very clear when you remove the cloud of office activity. Bad leaders got by without trying very hard in some offices. But digital transformation means less excuses for why objectives weren’t met.
Heather Haas says, “What makes a good leader effective hasn’t changed. Working digitally raises the bar for all the essential leadership skills.”
What are those essential leadership skills? Here’s what’s always been great about leaders.
Things good leaders will keep doing, digitally or not
Take care of people. Good leaders have always known the strong connection between happy team members and productivity. They give praise, create custom career paths, and make sure team members have the equipment and training they need.
But taking care of people goes much deeper. Leaders create a psychologically safe environment so that people aren’t on mental high alert all the time. Team members should be able to disagree with respect. Leaders remove chronic stress and create a high sense of belonging.
Digital workplaces make this more challenging because there are fewer touch points throughout the week. Leaders must proactively spot burnout and address wellbeing.
Employee engagement software can assist leaders, but it isn’t a replacement for genuine empathy.
Admit ignorance. Great digital leaders like Chris Byers admit they aren’t the smartest person in the room. Shane Snow says leaders need to be intellectually honest and not pretend they have the answer to everything. As the world becomes more connected, we will have to deal with more paradoxes. A leader must guide a team through uncharted territory and let go of outdated viewpoints. Leaders are coaches, not omniscient masters.
That said, a digital workplace offers many opportunities for leaders to learn such as connecting with someone from a different culture, or taking an online class.
Distribute authority. Great leaders have always found ways to spread authority around. Not in the sense of delegating activities, but truly sharing the responsibility for a project. Leaders should co-create strategies from the beginning with their teams. If your team is dependent on you to answer every question and prioritize every task, you have failed.
Work moves quickly in a digital workplace. If it’s dependent on your decision or blessing, you may miss a great opportunity.
Share information. Bad leaders withheld information because it was power. But digital tools make it easier than ever to find information. Instead of hoarding, good leaders give everyone access to as much information as possible. As Claire Lew, CEO of Know Your Team, says, the best leaders focus on building trust, context, and honesty by sharing.
Shared cloud storage makes access simple. Meetings can be transcribed as they happen and immediately shared with anyone who missed it.
However, because of the flood of information, other departments may have no idea what your team is doing. Great leaders are smart about making sure their team gets the attention and credit they need.
Build systems that help people. Great leaders don’t just solve a problem every time it comes up. They find patterns and create systems that make sure they never have to solve that problem again. In pre-digital environments, leaders made checklists and paper policies. Digital tools make it easier for leaders to create systems that are simple to use and enforce.
A focus on systems means that leaders are looking at metrics. As Gitlab points out, leading with metrics can confirm your instincts or bring up blind spots. Good leaders remember that metrics are just a proxy for something else, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t useful.
The culture of your company is a system, reinforced by the leaders decision on what to tolerate. Average leaders can write up a culture document and email it to everyone. But great leaders make sure it stays current and permeates through the organization.
Model the behaviors you want to see. More is caught than taught, even in the workplace. Leaders should model honesty, preparation, personal discipline, inclusivity, and the other traits you want to see on your team. Don’t preach about avoiding burnout, but send emails late into the night.
The future is better
The direct impact of digital transformation on leaders is significant, but minimal. Day-to-day work looks largely the same, just with more software.
The greatest challenge for leaders is not the technology, but how it reveals the quality of your leadership. Good leaders will thrive and be acknowledged in a digital workplace. Bad leaders will suffer and be exposed.
If you were great at leading human teams in the office, you only need to make some minor adjustments. But, if you always struggled with the ‘people’ part of leading, you’ve got a tough road ahead.
Digital tools have changed the way we collaborate, and leaders must adapt. But the real challenge is finding what great leaders have always done, and doubling down on those.
Photo by Miguel Á. Padriñán from Pexels
You may have heard that the future looks bleak for leaders. As digital transformation storms across organizations, much of what leaders did looks replaceable. AI is coming for your middle management.
But is the role of ‘leader of humans’ really in jeopardy? Will digital tools replace most of what leaders do today? Or will there still be work for team leaders?
Let’s look at the impact that digital transformation will have on leadership.
Things leaders will stop doing after a full digital transformation
Annual reviews. Ok, maybe this is hopeful. But if our dashboards update by the second, isn’t it absurd that we judge human performance annually? Performance reviews aren’t going away, but they will be more frequent and less subjective. Scott Burns, CEO of Structural, agrees that annual reviews are one of at least five concepts that won’t exist in five years.
Fill out paper forms. Digital leaders should do a lot less paperwork. There will still be digital forms to approve, but automated processes will convert that to clicking a button on a few exceptional cases.
Monitor employee activities. While digital transformation might mean more opportunities to track employee activity, let’s hope these are short lived due to their time waste and general ickiness.
Things leaders will start doing after a full digital transformation
Learn new software. In 10 years you will be using different software than you do now, likely from a company that doesn’t even exist. Software is in an explosive era, and it won’t stop anytime soon. For the foreseeable future, leaders must adjust to new software.
Use digital tools to create systems. Leaders need to be proficient with no-code tools to create their own project boards, workflows, and other systems. IT teams won’t be able to come to the rescue every time you want an automated process built.
Enforce a communication plan. Communication has always been complex, but digital tools have made it much worse. Without a plan, your team will drown in communication and nothing will get done. Leaders will also need to use many channels to get a message across. GitLab says that, “When you feel like you are repeating yourself, you probably just hit enough.”
Add emoji to communication. Emoji and GIFs have added a level of depth and richness to text communication that there’s no going back from.
Build video mute button best practices. Surprisingly, Peter Drucker doesn’t have much to say on this important issue.
Is that it?
You may notice that this list is pretty small. On the surface, digital transformation doesn’t impact leaders very much.
However, the true impact of a digital workplace is in what it exposes. The difference between good and bad leaders is very clear when you remove the cloud of office activity. Bad leaders got by without trying very hard in some offices. But digital transformation means less excuses for why objectives weren’t met.
Heather Haas says, “What makes a good leader effective hasn’t changed. Working digitally raises the bar for all the essential leadership skills.”
What are those essential leadership skills? Here’s what’s always been great about leaders.
Things good leaders will keep doing, digitally or not
Take care of people. Good leaders have always known the strong connection between happy team members and productivity. They give praise, create custom career paths, and make sure team members have the equipment and training they need.
But taking care of people goes much deeper. Leaders create a psychologically safe environment so that people aren’t on mental high alert all the time. Team members should be able to disagree with respect. Leaders remove chronic stress and create a high sense of belonging.
Digital workplaces make this more challenging because there are fewer touch points throughout the week. Leaders must proactively spot burnout and address wellbeing.
Employee engagement software can assist leaders, but it isn’t a replacement for genuine empathy.
Admit ignorance. Great digital leaders like Chris Byers admit they aren’t the smartest person in the room. Shane Snow says leaders need to be intellectually honest and not pretend they have the answer to everything. As the world becomes more connected, we will have to deal with more paradoxes. A leader must guide a team through uncharted territory and let go of outdated viewpoints. Leaders are coaches, not omniscient masters.
That said, a digital workplace offers many opportunities for leaders to learn such as connecting with someone from a different culture, or taking an online class.
Distribute authority. Great leaders have always found ways to spread authority around. Not in the sense of delegating activities, but truly sharing the responsibility for a project. Leaders should co-create strategies from the beginning with their teams. If your team is dependent on you to answer every question and prioritize every task, you have failed.
Work moves quickly in a digital workplace. If it’s dependent on your decision or blessing, you may miss a great opportunity.
Share information. Bad leaders withheld information because it was power. But digital tools make it easier than ever to find information. Instead of hoarding, good leaders give everyone access to as much information as possible. As Claire Lew, CEO of Know Your Team, says, the best leaders focus on building trust, context, and honesty by sharing.
Shared cloud storage makes access simple. Meetings can be transcribed as they happen and immediately shared with anyone who missed it.
However, because of the flood of information, other departments may have no idea what your team is doing. Great leaders are smart about making sure their team gets the attention and credit they need.
Build systems that help people. Great leaders don’t just solve a problem every time it comes up. They find patterns and create systems that make sure they never have to solve that problem again. In pre-digital environments, leaders made checklists and paper policies. Digital tools make it easier for leaders to create systems that are simple to use and enforce.
A focus on systems means that leaders are looking at metrics. As Gitlab points out, leading with metrics can confirm your instincts or bring up blind spots. Good leaders remember that metrics are just a proxy for something else, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t useful.
The culture of your company is a system, reinforced by the leaders decision on what to tolerate. Average leaders can write up a culture document and email it to everyone. But great leaders make sure it stays current and permeates through the organization.
Model the behaviors you want to see. More is caught than taught, even in the workplace. Leaders should model honesty, preparation, personal discipline, inclusivity, and the other traits you want to see on your team. Don’t preach about avoiding burnout, but send emails late into the night.
The future is better
The direct impact of digital transformation on leaders is significant, but minimal. Day-to-day work looks largely the same, just with more software.
The greatest challenge for leaders is not the technology, but how it reveals the quality of your leadership. Good leaders will thrive and be acknowledged in a digital workplace. Bad leaders will suffer and be exposed.
If you were great at leading human teams in the office, you only need to make some minor adjustments. But, if you always struggled with the ‘people’ part of leading, you’ve got a tough road ahead.
Digital tools have changed the way we collaborate, and leaders must adapt. But the real challenge is finding what great leaders have always done, and doubling down on those.
