Written by Lindsay K. Coy, M. Sc., Senior Consultant
In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, the ability to adapt to change is more crucial than ever. Organizations are constantly facing new challenges that require quick and effective responses. In a world that leans heavily on consistency and comfortable old habits, the organizations that will thrive through change will be those that develop workforce agility led by adaptive leaders. With agile leadership at the heart of successful organizations in the 21st century, it’s important to consider how leaders can be nimble and pivot smoothly.
What is leadership agility?
The Oxford Dictionary defines agility as “the ability to move quickly and easily” and “the ability to think quickly and in an intelligent way.” When it comes to leadership agility, this means being able to manage change efficiently and effectively, consider all factors at play, and take swift action that is in the best interest of one’s team and the organization as a whole.
How to develop agile leadership in 3 steps
As catalysts of change, leaders can only foster learning agility at an organizational level if they (and their teams) adopt an agile mindset first. Outlined below are several steps to help you not only develop leadership agility, but make it part of your everyday routine.
1. Lean into discomfort
- The first step toward adopting an agile leadership mentality is making the commitment to become more comfortable with change. Evaluate the current and foreseeable work context and consider what skills you and your team members may need to develop to stay ahead of the curve. Alternatively, consider whose strengths you might be able to tap into to weather the circumstances.
- When hesitant to adopt a new approach or adjust your course of action in response to new information or challenges, remind yourself of a time in the past in which doing so served to be beneficial. Then, consider the opportunities that accepting the new approach could bring.
- Identify a reliable colleague who will hold you accountable when you fall back on old habits and encourage you to work through adversity.
2. Stay curious
- When working to perfect your leadership agility skills, it’s important to have a healthy curiosity about what is going on in the world. Commit at least 15 minutes a day to reviewing informative resources to keep current with organizational and industry trends. This can include reading articles, listening to podcasts, reviewing content by influencers and experts on social media, or watching relevant videos online.
- Before making critical decisions, take the time to connect with trusted experts who can shed insight on any critical internal and external factors that should be considered.
- Remind yourself that demonstrating agile leadership doesn’t mean you need to be a subject matter expert in everything – especially at the rate at which everything is changing. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, pose thoughtful questions, and admit what you don’t know.
3. Reflect regularly
- Take a few moments each day to think back on new things you’ve learned and new experiences you’ve had. Consider recording these observations in a journal as a way to organize your thoughts, absorb what you’ve learned, and assess progress.
- Reflect on former beliefs and ways of working that no longer meet your needs or hold the same effectiveness as they did in the past. Then, consider the specific actions you can take to adjust accordingly. This can be done as an individual practice or as a collective exercise with team members or peers.
- When the only thing employees can rely on is change, it’s important that direct reports have a leader they can trust who consistently demonstrates agile leadership in their daily routine. Consider what you are doing to support and empower your team. Are you leading with empathy, acting rationally and confidently, and showing up as a role model for leadership agility? What could you be doing differently?
The impact of agile leadership on your organization
When working to improve leadership agility, it doesn’t have to be a major undertaking where you uproot all previous work philosophies and methodologies which you subscribed to in the past. By making small, incremental changes here and there, you can demonstrate flexibility to your team and adjust accordingly when inevitable changes come your way.
The truth is when it comes to developing or strengthening one’s leadership agility, the work is never really done. However, with the right tools, resources, and organizational support, the process can be enjoyable – not to mention, rewarding – as it bolsters an organization’s longevity and ability to weather the future changes that come along.
