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    You are here Home » leadership

    A Fresh Leadership Model for a New Decade

    Last updated on Mar 19, 2020 by Dan McCarthy · This post may contain affiliate links

    Guest post from Dr. Ranya Nehmeh:

    Why do the rest of us act like millennials are from
    another planet? We have a need to comment on the constant screen gazing, the
    matcha latte obsession, the job-hopping, the mood swings from apathy to
    omg…don’t even try to say you don’t know what I’m talking about. Millennials
    are such a distinct demographic, possessing generation wide characteristics
    that seem far from the norm, but let’s face it, this is the group that will
    start dictating the norm, especially in the work place.
    Organizations
    have undergone massive shifts over the last decade in terms of how they operate.
    The workplace of today is unrecognizable compared to when baby boomers (born between
    1946 – 64) started their careers. Work spaces, technology, demographics,
    cultural sensitivities, and remote working are but a few of the areas that have
    changed. Boomers instigated many of these changes to adapt the workplace to fit
    their needs. But now that they are starting to retire, what will happen to
    their stable work approach and traditional top-down leadership practices?
    Thanks, but no
    thanks Boomer, is what the tech-savvy, confident millennials (born between 1980
    - 2000) are saying. They prefer a bottoms-up approach, and want to feel
    involved and valued in the workplace. They have no interest in being told how
    things are done, or how things work.  They
    also have different ideas about what constitutes a good leader. This has contributed
    to a leadership gap: what millennials expect vs. what they are getting from
    their leaders.  
    With the onset
    of a new decade, it is predicted that millennials will make up almost half of
    the American workforce, so it is time for organizations to pay attention and
    minimize this leadership gap in order to embrace, as opposed to alienate, this
    valuable group of workers. The key is to stop trying to lead millennials by
    using generic leadership approaches, and start looking for innovative ideas
    that speak to this specific target group, or better yet, just start by
    listening.
    So where do we
    start? Well, we need to ask them what they want and not scoff at their
    responses.   That’s what I did. I went straight
    to the source and conducted an extensive survey of over 700 millennials from
    around the globe. And so, after dozens of conversations, and a few too many
    matcha lattes, I had a much better understanding of what they wanted. There was
    consistency in what they were asking for, which was a leadership style that was
    in sync with the times (technology, social media, ethics, respect) and catered
    to their needs, perspectives and strengths. Nine clear leadership traits emerged.
    I took the first letter of each trait and came up with the word … CHAMELEON.
    Communication
    Honesty
    Accountability
    Motivate
    Ethical
    Listen
    Emotional
    Intelligence
    Overcome
    Obstacles
    Nodal
    The ideal leader
    of millennials would possess these nine traits…The CHAMELEON Leader.
    During the
    survey, one of the questions asked participants if their leadership
    expectations were met when they joined the workplace; 62% said no. This
    statistic is alarming and highlights that millennials’ leadership expectations
    are, for the most part, not being met. Of course we like to say their
    expectations are unrealistic, but if you take a look at them you will realize
    that they are very in tune with the world we live in, and the world we hope to
    live in.
    The CHAMELEON
    Leader is meant to provide the bridge between expectation and reality. Why a
    chameleon? Because chameleons change color according to the situation. They are
    adaptable!
    This new decade,
    which will be ripe with environmental concerns, instability, and technology
    booms, requires a new leadership model. Leaders who are ready to embrace this
    young and ambitious generation and lead them energetically into the future will
    require a shift in mind-set, a visionary approach, a willingness to collaborate
    not dictate, inspire not conspire, but most importantly to get excited about
    the potential benefits of having this generation on board. Being a chameleon leader for millennials means finding out
    what is important to them and creating an authentic way to communicate that
    understanding.
     

    Dr. Ranya Nehmeh, author of the book The CHAMELEON Leader. Connecting with Millennials holds a Doctorate in Business Administration from the Swiss Management

    University and a Masters in Human Resources from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). She has over fifteen years of work experience in the area of human resource management. Based in Vienna, Austria. Ranya considers herself a third-culture kid. The CHAMELEON Leader is her debut book.

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