Entrepreneur, motivational speaker and leadership expert Glenn Llopis believes contemporary business leaders lack courage in terms of embracing change. Llopis thinks too many business owners, executives and managers are making safe moves rather than discovering new ways of doing things.
For 2016, the motivational speaker wants contemporary business leaders to be change agents, which means they should start to make the changes themselves instead of simply running with the newest trends. Most business owners and entrepreneurs may not realize what it takes to move a company forward. Here are five predictions for 2016 that give top brass some good ideas.
1. Leaders Must Remain Hands-On
Individuals should take the reigns of a business to remain at the forefront of making partnerships, measuring employee satisfaction and evolving the business's core marketplace strategy. Contemporary business leaders cannot let others lead by substitution simply because an owner or executive has the ultimate decision-making power to make rapid changes to keep pace within a particular industry.
Executives should listen to their teams and team managers by showing empathy, remaining engaged and discussing concerns with genuine interest. The success of the overall team leads to the success of the c-suite or an ownership team. That means frequent conversations with just about everyone, from those minding the store to people on the front lines of customer interactions.
2. Owners Should Manage Their Personal Brand
Even though contemporary business leaders have a company to run, these people should manage their own personal brands effectively at the same time. Without a strong sense of identity, entrepreneurs and innovators may become complacent and listless. When that happens, growth stagnates.
3. Wisdom-Based Economy
More and more, owners should realize that this is a wisdom-based economy when it comes to teamwork. Companies need someone smart enough to know how to flow with changes, create relaxed work environments and develop strategies that maintain a company's culture while maintaining diversity of thought. Contemporary business leaders are no longer about what they know, but how they use what they know to embrace change and new business models.
4. Cultural Fluency
Leadership must include cultural fluency when creating a strategy to move forward with any type of plan for the company. Entrepreneurs need to engage customers and acquire talent based on demographic shifts in America. Old ways of doing things may not work due to cultural changes within team membership, competitors and customers.
5. Opportunity Gaps
Executives and owners need to remain cognizant of competitive threats and unforeseen trends as they solve problems for their business. Any missteps could end in setbacks, less revenue and decreased profits. This means closing any opportunity gaps quickly and efficiently by remaining observant, timing any changes properly, sharing opportunities with others and never taking opportunities for granted.
Contemporary business leaders and change agents don't get that way overnight, and companies don't change right away. However, the attitudes of a company reflect solely on leadership. Therefore, any company changes have to start at the top of the pile.
Photo courtesy of suphakit73 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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