IT is going through a bit of an existential crisis. This is because it has lost the trust of several key stakeholders, right from occupants of the C- Suite and even individual contributors. IT has also been increasingly designated, as an isolated, siloed corner of the company. Business and technology leaders now need to work together to bridge the gap between their respective domains. First of all, tech leaders can no longer afford to hide out in any particular part of the complex. The talent recruitment must be such, that their teams have a diverse set of cognitive individuals. This will also encourage cross- collaboration. The conversations within the team too must evolve form systems or networks, to business decisions, reinforcing the centrality of technology to all operations. The employees too need to be fully engaged and aligned to this principle.

Source:https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/bridging-the-leadership-gap-between-tech-and-business/

Uploaded Date:29 July 2019

Leadership must ideally be motivational, yet we often observe leaders who emphasize the negative, to rise above the others. People tend to be drawn towards these, often rabble- rousers. A lot of it is down to human psychology, which helps preserve a strong social hierarchy of conformity. In a business research recently executed, by an Assistant Professor from the University of Virginia, several phrases by political leaders were conveyed to those undertaking the study. The names of the said speaker were not mentioned. Perhaps unsurprisingly, those in the experiment seemed more drawn to the punitive and vitriolic statements rather than those that were magnanimous or encouraging. However, naysayers may not always hold the edge. A lot evolves with time. Naysayers end up drawing a lot of attention, but may also draw huge amount of flak, if they end up not following on their promises made.

Source:https://hbr.org/2019/01/why-were-drawn-to-leaders-who-emphasize-the-negative?utm_campaign=hbr&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

Uploaded Date:29 July 2019

Researchers have identified a few profiles of successful digital executives. Chief Digital Officers (CDOs) have now become integral to any business. Their job is to act as chief enterprise transformers. Another of their key tasks is to oversee the entire digital marketing narrative. They need to provide the direction and vision for how the digital activities will pan out. In order to execute this digital transformation, these CDOs need to curate their own internal as well as external networks. Certain skills and professional expertise they need to fall back upon. Not all CDOs are the same either. While some thrive in certain roles, others do better at a different organization.

Source:https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/four-profiles-of-successful-digital-executives/

Uploaded Date:23 July 2019

While the command- and- control form of leadership seems to be so old school, no viable alternative has emerged either that may be replicated at scale. The style of management is now dependent on the nature of the leaders. There are broadly the three types, beginning with the entrepreneurial leaders. They have high self- confidence and are action- oriented. They possess a strategic mindset. Such leaders also end up as ambassadors for the talent recruitment programme, as they manage to attract others in. The second category are the enabling leaders. They have a connecting personality, and are effective communicators. They are also adept at coaching and management training. The third are the architecting leaders. As the name suggests, they are the ones who believe in the sum total being greater than its individual parts. A new form has now emerged known as nimble leadership. Here, the decision- making is distributed across the levels. The processes here, balance freedom and control.

Source:https://hbr.org/2019/07/nimble-leadership

Uploaded Date:23 July 2019