Podcast: How the Pandemic Could Change Leadership, Culture and Work

Key Points: 

• Emotional intelligence should be a critical focus during the pandemic.
• Organizations only change when people change.
• Communication, connectivity and creativity should guide leaders in a post-pandemic world.

Everyone experiences change in their workplace at some point or another. But the current pandemic has accelerated those changes to a tipping point. Dale Jensen, Partner-in-Charge, North Texas Assurance Services at Weaver, and Lee Colan, Ph.D. of The L Group, got together for a lively and engaging conversation about what the future holds for leaders and how culture and work may shift.

Colan likens organizational changes to a hurricane. “In the outer winds of a hurricane, there are all kinds of stuff swirling around,” Colan said. “But in the core of a hurricane, there’s the eye. It’s stable, right? When we think about organizations, people, culture and leadership, the core concepts of leading people and building a great culture are at the eye of a storm. And things tend to be unchanged there.” Colan believes people tend to get caught up in the outer winds instead of focusing on those core tenants that don’t change but serve an organization well.

For leaders, Jensen believes it is essential for honest strategic conversations to assess where a particular organization is during the pandemic, and what are the steps required to make it through this challenging time and come out the other side ready for the future. “I think there’s going to have to be a lot of strategic discussion around what the workplace environment looks like when people start to come back to the office,” Jensen said. “Leaders need to be open, honest, accepting and available to hear what their employees are saying. People need this approach from leadership because the pandemic’s heightened their emotional needs.”

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