Businesses and institutions do not operate in an unperturbed vacuum. They operate in an ever-changing world which is a whole, consisting of constituent parts called continents, countries, and regions. These constituent parts generally do not operate in isolation either. Everything is interdependent and impacts the whole, that is, the rapidly changing world in which businesses and institutions operate. They are therefore subject to being positively or negatively affected by many external and internal factors. Some of these factors include country-related legislation, government regulations, the state of the economy, the educational level of the populace, international treaties, trade agreements, employee work attitudes, political stability, employee issues, and organizational leadership, policies and culture.
The world is changing at an astounding and sometimes frightening pace, not just in terms of technological advancement, which seems to be the main focus of such change, but in a myriad of other ways. Two of the most important additional ways in which the world is changing include
(a) climate change, which can have numerous negative or devastating effects on business, and
(b) longevity.
Longevity will determine how the aging population equips itself to survive in a world where knowledge is doubling, tripling and quadrupling, as well as how businesses will decide whether to employ the younger technological-age generation with new skill sets and current knowledge or seniors with solid experience and most likely better work values and attitudes, but who may not necessarily be tech-savvy.
As the world changes, organizations have to fit into its mold and organizational leaders have to be on the cutting edge in order to navigate the business through the “VUCA” of its existence.
According to Erik Østergaard (2018) in an article in Training Industry titled “What Skills Do Leaders Need to Stay Relevant in a Changing World?” – “For many years, strategic execution was all about ‘more of what we did last year, just faster and cheaper.’” He went on to say that such an approach was impractical in a rapidly changing world and that strategic execution now requires a focus on adaptability instead of efficiency. This involves focusing on problem-solving instead of products, in order to survive.
The Leadership Agility certificate program offered by Genashtim in collaboration with eCornell will equip you with the necessary internal strengths and strategic skills, preparing you to effectively inspire your internal and external spheres to reap your desired results.