In the VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous) world we live in, modern day leaders have to be fast and agile learners. They need to be able to take on new skills and even unlearn them when necessary in order to adapt to the constantly changing workplace environment. And for HR professionals it’s becoming increasingly hard to identify, attract and retain these individuals. So what should you consider when assessing and developing those professionals geared up for leadership positions?

Here at a&dc we have identified the five key facets needed to develop leaders in the modern world:

·         Learning: Constantly seeks opportunities to learn, will evaluate experiences and apply learning

·         Intellect: The ability to offer incisive analysis, strategic perspective and insightful judgement

·         Values: Acts with integrity, fairness, respect and courage

·         Emotion: Manages own emotion, can build relationships, can influence and inspire others

·         Drive: Action oriented, drive to achieve results, enthusiastic and committed

This LIVED framework can benefit organisations in a number of ways, by benchmarking and evaluating your current leadership potential, allowing you to carry out succession planning and developing your leaders of the future.

Earlier this month, Satya Nadella was unveiled as the man to replace Steve Ballmer as head of Microsoft. His journey to the top of the IT giant has been an interesting one and highlights the LIVED capabilities that he’s shown in order to make it to the top. He ‘commuted’ to Chicago from Redmond, Washington every Saturday before returning a day later – a round journey of 60 hours by car or 8 by plane  – to complete his master’s degree, highlighting both his ability to learn and his drive for results. He’s also been quoted saying “I’m a learner […] what excites me is I’m learning something.”

Nadella’s email to the Microsoft staff on his first day reflects his emotion and integrity. In the open message to his employees he talks about his passion for innovation before introducing himself and his personal life, helping to build early relationships with his co-workers. And his intellect can’t be denied. As well as the aforementioned masters from Booth School of Business in Chicago, he’s also gained a degree in computer science and two others in engineering and business administration. His insight, incisiveness and strategic perspective have been reflected in the way he’s risen through the ranks at one of the world’s most high profile organisations to follow in the footsteps of people like Bill Gates and Paul Allen.

Finding your own Nadella may prove to be difficult, after all, it’s not easy to find a ready-made leader. However, it’s more likely he’s developed his LIVED competencies throughout his career. Great leaders don’t have to be born with leadership qualities; you can develop these in your high-potentials. All leaders need to constantly develop to stay ahead of the curve. Nadella appears to have all the tools and attributes to be successful, as well as the drive to constantly develop and it should be interesting to see how he grows as leader in the future.

Join me for my next blog post, where I’ll take you through how you can develop LIVED capabilities in your future leaders.

How do you identify and develop your future leaders? Let us know by commenting below.