In today’s tumultuous workplace, where situations are complex, uncertain, and highly fluid, success requires leaders who are open to new ways of thinking and working. However, when problems become difficult or stressful, leaders often fall back on comfortable old habits, becoming inflexible or paralyzed. These tendencies can escalate problems, risk key initiatives, and frustrate colleagues.
There is another way. Leadership agility gives leaders the ability to respond more effectively.
What Is Leadership Agility?
Agility in a leadership context means taking action and making decisions that move the business forward amidst uncertainty and change.
This requires creativity, flexibility, innovation, and deliberate action. It relies on a leader’s ability to manage change, conflict, and resources to solve problems and achieve goals.
Leadership agility is ultimately an outcome of the application of a set of competencies—a “meta-competency” of sorts. These include:
- Flexibility
- Adaptability
- Mindfulness
- The ability to act with incomplete information
Reacting versus Responding
Leaders are regularly called upon to deal with novel situations and solve unprecedented problems. An agile approach enables leaders to thoughtfully respond to these situations rather than simply react. A measured, thoughtful response is more likely to drive results.
Effective leaders accept the challenges posed by unexpected changes. Agile leadership creates space in the mind to respond thoughtfully, rationally, and with intent, allowing leaders to take a big-picture view, remain open to learning, and bring forth solutions and productive outcomes.
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Agile Leadership in Practice
Agile leadership involves stepping back from a challenge or opportunity, broadening the current perspective to consider new ideas and points of view, then shifting the approach to what’s most effective and appropriate.
Leadership agility requires self-awareness and situational awareness, as well as a willingness to venture outside comfort zones and take risks. It is about creating a mindset that enables leaders to demonstrate agility day-to-day.
The Leadership Agility Model
Dion Leadership’s approach to this work is grounded in business and academic research showing how to make an impact and lasting change. We synthesized the best thinking to create a leadership agility model that is practical and action oriented. It begins with knowing your purpose within your team or organization and understanding yourself.
- Know Your Purpose: Ground yourself in what needs to be accomplished and the parameters guiding projects and initiatives. Understanding and accepting your organization’s purpose, values, and strategic direction is the starting point for demonstrating leadership agility.
- Understand Yourself: Self-awareness is critical. Knowing your personal tendencies, strengths, limitations, stressors, and energizers helps you manage your mindset and responses. The right tools and techniques can help you gain insights into your personality and work style.
- Check Your Mindset: Mindset shapes how you see, interpret, and respond to situations. It’s important to assess whether your mindset aligns with your purpose and desired outcome. Changing your thoughts and shifting your mindset take practice and are essential for responding thoughtfully and effectively.
- Respond with Intention and Equanimity: Grounded, purposeful, and self-aware leaders can respond with intention and equanimity. This approach ensures that actions align with the organization’s purpose and leverage self-awareness to achieve the best outcomes.
- Reflect on Actions and Experience: Reflection is key for ongoing development. Agile leaders regularly reflect on lessons learned and seek feedback to increase self-awareness and improve effectiveness.
Putting it all together, the model works like this:
Additional Leadership Agility Reading Resources
“Leading with Agility” by Steve Dion, Training Industry Magazine (2024).
“Mastering Leadership Agility for an Agile Workplace” by Steve Dion, Association for Talent Development, ATD Blog (2024).
“Leadership Agility: The Critical Skill Leaders Need Now” by Joe LaDuke, HRCI’s HR Leads Business Blog (2023).
Dion Leadership’s “Leading with Agility” course.
Dion Leadership’s “Everything DiSC® Agile EQ™” course.
Developing Your Leadership Agility
Becoming a more agile leader is an ongoing process that requires practice, focus, humility, and patience. Agility is necessary for leaders to succeed in an unpredictable, changeable, and interdependent business world.
This process includes grounding yourself in your organization’s purpose, understanding your personal drivers and values, managing your mindset, responding with intention, and reflecting on your actions and experiences.
By embracing these practices, leaders can navigate complexities, drive innovation, and achieve sustainable success in today’s dynamic workplace. Comments from the leaders who have completed our Leading with Agility course include:
- “I will use this content in every situation throughout my day.”
- “This program taught me how my non-verbal cues are driving my emotional information to employees.”
- “This program really helps with focusing on the issue at hand and not letting emotions get in the way of decision making.”
Do you need more agile leaders in your organization? Act now by setting up a meeting with us and letting our experts share more details about our cutting-edge leadership agility training program and the other ways we can help you build an organization full of agile leaders.
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