Who said that leadership is easy? No one will in 2025. The complexity of managing and building a team is increasing due to a number of factors, including technology and government legislation. This will lead to the following trends in leadership.
Conscious Intuition
Artificial Intelligence, as in the last few years, will continue to drive the next industrial revolution. It also means that business leaders will need to use a second opinion when deciding whether a candidate is using technology to fool employers and gain unfair advantages in the recruitment process. It is especially frustrating when it comes to attracting and hiring qualified candidates.
Will leaders, as this problem becomes more serious in 2025 instruct HR to increase the rigor of the hiring process through competency-based interviewing, incredibly accurate job descriptions, and forcing candidates into incredibly detailed presentations, or will they simply go back to basics by meeting with candidates face to face and trusting their instincts? Will they go back to the basics and meet candidates face-to-face, trusting their instincts or will they make hiring more rigorous?
It is possible to drill down on a candidate’s abilities by imposing more rigor, but it will be at the cost of knowing the person behind the mask. Those who rely on gut feelings will be reverting to the path that has led to today’s diversity and inclusion problems.
It’s clear that leadership is not easy. A big challenge for 2025 will be to find the balance between intuition and scientific knowledge – the heart and the head – and how to overcome the disadvantages of both and highlight their benefits.
It is important to accurately gauge the character and personality of a candidate to make sure they fit the company’s values, while also being mindful of any biases that may be present. It is important to use the correct science and technology in order to maintain objectivity while assessing skills and other key attributes. It’s a practice of ‘conscious intuitiveness’ that allows you to accurately assess the person as well as their abilities.
Empowering individuals to take charge of their own lives
Self-management has gained momentum in recent years, largely due to the desire among the younger generations entering the workforce to gain more responsibility. They also want the satisfaction and benefits that come with it. Do leaders have to become better at delegating, collaborating and building trust in order to attract the best talent?
Self-management as a dream is not the same thing as self-management in reality. Many employees want to be self-managing, but they don’t know what it involves. Self-management is the exception, not the rule, when it comes to employees. It gives them a sense of fulfillment, helps develop their talent, and benefits the business.
Leaders will need to find ways to align their employees’ efforts with these three factors. This will lead to exceptional self-management, and every employee can become a leader.
Certainty is a given. Even though leadership is changing, it’s still vital to business success if approached correctly. The next step in leadership is to empower people to take charge of their own lives. To get the best out of a workforce, investing in career development and leadership programmes is a good start. To get to know people better, you should put character and skills before job titles and employee numbers.
Consistent Flexibility
You’re right if you think 2025 will be the year of leadership paradox. In the coming 12 months, companies will have to implement the processes necessary to ensure that the new Employment Rights Bill does not starve them out of talent and human resource they need. This is despite the fact it will be more costly, complex, and litigious than ever before to obtain. This is due to the increase in employer national security contributions, the ban on zero-hour contracts, and flexible working starting from the first day.
To reduce the need for hiring, one strategy is to improve the skills of existing employees. New people will need to be hired, whether they are permanent or temporary. It is important that the HR and legal department fully understands the new rules, and creates policies and processes to protect the company and grow its workforce.
By creating a talent pool of regular contingent employees who are familiar with the business, understand its values, and know how to work within it, you can create a flexible and consistent source of talent that can be called on when needed. It may be necessary to plan ahead for peak times and offer a retainer or incentive. It will increase loyalty and productivity more than hiring unknowns on zero-hour contracts at the last minute.
Back BAU
What does the year 2025 mean to business leaders? In essence, it means more complexity, greater regulation, and higher costs, especially in the search for talent.
Two solutions are right in front of you.
First, crack the AI and automation codes to maximize the benefits of smart technologies and gain insight from the ever-growing data mountain. It will increase efficiency, allow your employees to do more productive work and give them the tools they need to make better, faster decisions. Yes, you can reduce the need for hiring and help your current employees manage themselves.
Second, build a more flexible and balanced workforce by creating a solid contingent talent pool. It is important to embed contingent workers into the workforce as strategic members, not just as temporary fill-ins. They can also contribute to long-term goals. This burgeoning workforce element will continue to grow as organisations adapt to changing demands and maintain agility.
Ultimately, the year 2025 will present a number of new challenges to leaders.
It’s business as usual!
