BLUF
Resilient leaders are more important than ever in the COVID and post COVID world.
Summary
COVID-19 forced leaders to make difficult decisions sometimes without the benefit of 'lessons learned'. This article outlines the qualities possessed by resilient leaders as follows:
- Are able to recover from setbacks.
- Stay optimistic and mission-oriented
- Respond, instead of simply reacting
- Prepared to make decisions with imperfect or incomplete knowledge
- Avoid taking the path of least resistance in decision making
- Overcome the fear of failure
- Maintain consistent and clear communication.
- Remain coachable, regardless of position.
- Build positive and trusting relationships.
- Are comfortable saying I don't know—but make a point of finding out what they don't know.
- Know when to take bold risks and are prepared to try something new.
- Invest in the development of others.
- Embrace change.
- Prioritise the mental health and well-being of their team.
- Adapt their management style according to the current environment.
Consider which of the qualities listed are the most important when working in a military environment.
References
- May 2020 Forbes The Essence Of Resilient Leadership: Business Recovery From COVID-19
- May 2020 Strat+business The downside of resilient leadership
- June 2020 HRD Why it’s crucial to be a resilient leader
- Aug 2020 BW Responding To Covid-19 : How Resilient Leadership And Human-Centric Approach Can Help Companies Navigate Through This Crisis