Introduction

A decade ago, the Harvard Business Review presented a viewpoint that Human Resources Directors (HRDs) needed help to assert their influence at the boardroom level, predicting that roles like CTOs and CDOs were set to outpace them. In this revealing blog post, we explore why, contrary to these predictions, HRDs have emerged as key players in the corporate hierarchy and how they’ve successfully carved a niche for themselves at both C-Level and D-Level. The narrative that unfolds is a testament to the unexpected evolution of power dynamics in the corporate world.

HRDs: The Unforeseen Influencers in the C-Suite

Historically, corporate leadership was synonymous with the CFO, CEO, and COO. As the business landscape evolves, it’s essential to identify figures whose influence is growing beyond these traditional roles. Here, a recent meta-study published in the Journal of Organisational Leadership comes into play, indicating that organisations with strong HR leadership witnessed a striking 23% boost in employee engagement, leading to significant improvements in performance and profitability. This challenges the stereotype of who the movers and shakers in the corporate world should be, highlighting the powerful impact of HRDs.

The Talent Tug of War: A Stepping Stone for HRDs

In the fiercely competitive arena for top talent, HRDs have grabbed the spotlight. They’ve used their strategic acumen to navigate the challenges of attracting, developing, and retaining the best in the business. A Harvard Business Review article published in 2011 claimed that HR still needs to work on gaining clout in the C-Suite. But, a decade later, HRDs have emerged as critical players, challenging that very notion. A recent study by a respected global consulting firm featured in the Harvard Business Review demonstrated that organisations with HRDs heavily involved in talent management saw a remarkable 35% improvement in retention rates for high-performing employees.

Driving Organisational Success and Culture

According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), organisations that adopt strategic HR practices have reported a 20% increase in productivity and a 25% decrease in turnover rates. HRDs are crucial in shaping and nurturing a healthy organisational culture and enhancing employee engagement, retention, and productivity. They are positioning themselves as invaluable allies to C-suite and D-level executives, actively contributing to the company’s success.

Reimagining Leadership for the Future

Today, companies are acknowledging the importance of people-centric strategies more than ever, and HRDs are well-positioned to shape the future of leadership. Their expertise in harmonising talent management, leadership development, and cultural transformation places them as key drivers of success.

An article by McKinsey & Company titled “The new possible: How HR can help build the organisation of the future” emphasises the strategic role of HRDs in the modern corporate environment. As they step up to the plate and redefine the path of organisational growth, HRDs are demonstrating their invaluable contribution to the C-suite and D-level executives.

In a post published by the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance, the authors advocate for elevating the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) to a more strategic role with a regular boardroom presence. As companies increasingly recognise this, HRDs are being given greater responsibility for overseeing talent development and cultural efforts.

Conclusion

The rise of HRDs as influential power players is not conjecture. It’s now a reality supported by compelling evidence, as seen in the meta-study and various reputable publications. As companies navigate the changing corporate landscape, leveraging the strategic contributions of HRDs is vital for driving productivity, attracting top talent, and crafting a thriving organisational culture. The time has come to embrace the emergence of HRDs and usher in a new era of corporate leadership.

References


“The New Path to the C-Suite” – Harvard Business Review (2011): https://hbr.org/2011/03/the-new-path-to-the-c-suite

“Has Your C-Suite Changed to Reflect the Changing Times?” – EY (2021): https://www.ey.com/en_us/growth/has-your-c-suite-changed-to-reflect-the-changing-times

“Evolution of the C-Suite: What Changes Can We Anticipate in the Coming Years?” – HR Daily Advisor (2019): https://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/2019/06/19/evolution-of-the-c-suite-what-changes-can-we-anticipate-in-the-coming-years/

“A Deeper Dive into Talent Management: The New Board Imperative” – Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance (2021): https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2021/08/12/a-deeper-dive-into-talent-management-the-new-board-imperative/

“The new possible: How HR can help build the organisation of the future” – McKinsey & Company (2023): https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-new-possible-how-hr-can-help-build-the-organization-of-the-future

When asked how he went bankrupt, a character in Ernest Hemmingway’s The Sun Also Rises responds, “Two ways. Gradually, then suddenly.” This description encapsulates so many of the changes that emerged as a result of the pandemic, most especially within the workplace. Plenty of the shifts we saw to working practices—such as introducing some form of home or hybrid working as standard—have already become accepted1 as part of the much-touted “new normal”. Others are still evolving, not least when it comes to the relationship between businesses and their employees’ health and wellbeing. One practice that has emerged as potentially pivotal in bridging the gap between personal welfare and workplace performance is that of mindfulness.

Mindfulness

The Oxford Mindfulness Center2 defines mindfulness as “moment-to-moment awareness of one’s experience, without judgment.” Dan Harris, author of 10 Percent Happier3, describes it even more plainly. “I think of mindfulness as the ability not to be yanked around by your own emotions”. Whatever definition you use, the consensus is that mindfulness offers an array of benefits on a personal and professional level. Which is why it’s no wonder business innovators—some before the pandemic, many after— have chosen to bring it into the workplace.

Tipping point

A 2019 survey by LinkedIn4 found that nearly half of workers feel stress in their jobs, with 70% of them feeling it as a result of their workload and their work-life balance. Meanwhile Gallup5 found that 23% of employees feel burnout at work very often or always, and a further 44% reported feeling it sometimes. The fact that these findings are from before the pandemic makes clear that businesses had been dancing on cracks for a long time before the ultimate disaster struck, and that the system (or at least a stark number of the employees within it) were teetering on the brink. To call the pandemic the straw that broke the camel’s back would be to minimize its devastation. But let’s face it, the camel was staggering and stumbling for a long while before whispers started emerging from Wuhan.

Some businesses could see that. It’s why many of the leading corporate innovators had been incrementally introducing mindfulness techniques to their work environment through the late 2000s and 2010s6. Apple, Google, Twitter, and a whole host of other Silicon Valley movers and shakers were championing everything from meditation rooms to in-office yoga and mindfulness classes through mindful lunches. That was Hemmingway’s gradually. Then, in March 2020, came the suddenly. Worker welfare became unignorable. Mindfulness emerged as a clear solution.

Mindfulness productivity gains and profit

Reducing burnout and caring for worker well-being are some of the benefits mindfulness offers businesses. But to put the major tech players’ adoption of such techniques down purely to concern for their personnel may be to give them undeserved credit. While worker welfare likely did factor into their reasoning, they were no doubt also influenced by the numbers surrounding mindfulness’ productivity gains.

Aetna, a US health insurer that trained 13,000 employees in mindfulness practices, estimated an annual productivity improvement of around $3,000 per employee, as well as a reported reduction in stress levels of 28%7. Meanwhile SAP, a leading German software company, saw a 200%8 return on investment, based on data from a survey undertaken with the help of 650 SAP employees who underwent mindfulness training through the Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute9 (SIYLI). Awareness around well-being and mental health has increased in prominence across society as a whole and the business world is no different, but it would be naïve to pretend the bottom-line numbers weren’t a major contributory factor—if not the primary one— in mindfulness’ corporate ascendency.

Origins

Of course, to give Silicon Valley credit for the benefits of mindfulness would be myopic in the extreme. These ideas are of an Eastern origin and have been around for millennia. Jon Kabat-Zinn, founder of MBSR10 (mindfulness-based stress reduction), is often attributed with bringing mindfulness techniques westwards in the 1970s. Though it’s the advent of more modern technology—best exemplified by the then-unimaginable convenience of yoga and meditation apps— that has contributed significantly to the practice’s meteoric rise.

Spirituality integrates with business

While it may be tempting to presume that utilising these grand spiritual ideas for corporate agendas was a result of this move westwards, instigated by the monetise-at-all-costs instincts of Mega Capitalism, that assumption would be wrong. East Asian corporations such as Panasonic and Toyota have long been taking advantage of ancient teachings in a corporate context11. In fact, “zen”, a widely recognised if less widely understood concept relating to (and deriving from the Sanskrit translation of) meditation, is the foundation of the term “kaizen”.

Kaizen12 is a commonplace piece of business terminology in Japan, meaning change for the better or continuous improvement. It involves making the work environment more efficient and effective by creating a team atmosphere, improving everyday procedures, ensuring employee engagement, and making a job more fulfilling, less tiring, and safer. Its prevalence demonstrates that the marriage between mindfulness and corporate practice is no recent (or exclusively western) thing.

The benefits

When looking at the benefits mindfulness offers, it’s easy to see why it’s an appealing prospect to all parties, east and west. Mindfulness has been found to help reduce emotional exhaustion13, to help foster compassion and empathy14, to improve decision making15, to reduce aggression16, to generate greater attention and focus17, to promote divergent thinking18, to reduce stress, and to improve short term memory19. It is a seemingly endless list of benefits, each impacting instrumental parts of our day-to-day life, personal and professional. What’s more, research20 shows that only short mindfulness sessions are necessary to achieve such results, rather than any dramatic lifestyle overhaul. A matter of minutes each day is enough. It’s no wonder businesses see it as an easy win. Even the US army is using mindfulness21 training to help soldiers better prepare for and deal with stress, before and after deployment.

The science

How mindfulness works and how it impacts—and potentially alters—our brain has unsurprisingly been the intrigue of scientists and academics the world over. In their book Altered Traits22, Daniel Goleman, a Harvard psychologist, and Richard Davidson, a neuroscientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, found that mindfulness practices such as breathing meditation are associated with decreased gray-matter density in the amygdala, the region of the brain that initiates a response to stress. Researchers at the University of the Sunshine Coast23 in Australia found that mindfulness training increased the efficiency of brain pathways that process information coming in from the senses. In other words, participants in their study were found to literally see information more accurately24. The idea that mindfulness can genuinely re-wire our brains continues to enthral, and the evidence is mounting.

Going forwards

Scott Shute25, former Head of Mindfulness and Compassion at LinkedIn, author of The Full Body Yes: Change Your Work and Your World from the Inside Out, and upcoming guest on The 1% Podcast26, wants to mainstream mindfulness—in the workplace and beyond. Scott says that we should treat mindfulness in the same way we trat our physical health. “Fifty years ago, physical exercise was a strange thing. Now, every company feels good if they can provide gyms at work.”27 His argument is that in the same way we make time to exercise or go out of our way to eat nutritiously, we should also make the effort to strengthen our minds.

Considering the wide-scale proven benefits, the relatively little effort needed to achieve them, and the ubiquity of mindfulness apps28 offering free trials for curious parties, now feels as good a time as ever to start your mindfulness journey. One that will likely provoke change in two ways. Gradually, then suddenly.

More on burnout

More on mindfulness

References

1 https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/articles/ishybridworkingheretostay/2022-05-23

2 https://www.oxfordmindfulness.org/

3 https://www.tenpercent.com/

4 https://www.linkedin.com/business/learning/blog/career-success-tips/stress-at-work-report-who-is-feeling-it-the-most-and-how-to-com

5 https://www.gallup.com/workplace/237059/employee-burnout-part-main-causes.aspx

6 https://www.wired.com/2013/06/meditation-mindfulness-silicon-valley/

7 https://www.bcg.com/publications/2018/unleashing-power-of-mindfulness-in-corporations

8 https://www.mindful.org/mindful-working-the-best-practices-for-bringing-mindfulness-to-work/

9 https://siyli.org/

10 https://positivepsychology.com/mindfulness-based-stress-reduction-mbsr/

11 https://www.bcg.com/publications/2018/unleashing-power-of-mindfulness-in-corporations

12 https://www.investopedia.com/terms/k/kaizen.asp

13 https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&referer=https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/can_mindful_managers_make_happier_employees&httpsredir=1&article=4319&context=lkcsb_research

14 https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/07/mindfulness-meditation-empathy-compassion/398867/

15 https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/02/140212112745.htm

16 https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0118221

17 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2018.00315/full

18 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12671-014-0352-9

19 https://www.bcg.com/publications/2018/unleashing-power-of-mindfulness-in-corporations

20 https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/mindfulness-at-work/

21 https://www.army.mil/article/149615/improving_military_resilience_through_mindfulness_training

22 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34272471-altered-traits

23 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-78343-w

24 https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/can-mindfulness-change-your-brain-202105132455

25 https://www.scottshute.com/

26 https://steeringpoint.ie/the-1-podcast/

27 https://www.mindful.org/mindful-working-the-best-practices-for-bringing-mindfulness-to-work/]

28 https://positivepsychology.com/mindfulness-apps/

In a recent Financial Times article accompanied by the headline: “‘Big Brother’ managers should turn the lens on themselves”, Rana Foroohar, the newspaper’s Global Business Columnist, made a compelling argument for why the increased surveillance of workers is not the answer within our increasingly hybrid working world.

Stats such as the 13.5% increase in the number of meetings attended by employees during the pandemic speaks of industries and sectors ill at ease in affording workers more autonomy and trust, especially in settings where ‘clocking in, clocking out’ has been a core routine for decades or longer.

The remote work disconnect

Survey results from Microsoft, published back in September, pinpointed this friction, highlighting that while 87% of participants felt they were “as, or more” productive when working from home, a staggering 80% of managers disagreed with the very same statement. Speaking to the BBC, the company’s chief executive, Satya Nadella, urged companies to look beyond what he termed the “productivity paranoia” and seek real and practical solutions to fix this “disconnect”.

The number of companies using data surveillance software to track employee activities has doubled since the beginning of the pandemic, and Foroohar’s column put forward three challenges in response. Not only are workers more stressed and resentful of being monitored closely, but creative activities – vital in so many organisations – are much harder to quantify and reflect accurately by metrics alone. In addition, research showing that 70% of meetings actually keep employees from doing more productive work puts the onus on managers and our organisational leaders alike to do better.

The inner CEO

And that is where the work and insight of Jeremy Blain, Chief Executive of PerformanceWorks International, is worth considering. Backing up the long-held belief that workers tend to leave managers rather than companies when they switch roles, Jeremy’s excellent book “The Inner CEO: Unleashing leaders at all Levels” was one topic that came up during our broad-ranging conversation on the 1% Podcast. 

Distribution of leadership

Jeremy advocates that developing leaders across all levels of a business is the most effective response for any organisation experiencing significant and fundamental change. In reality, he’s talking about the vast majority of companies right now as they not only embrace digital transformation but also try to address the enormous organisational shifts brought about by blended workplaces, remote working, the so-called ‘Great Resignation”, and our teams being more diverse in nature than ever before.

Empowerment

Business leaders trying to ensure the consistent implementation of a strategy – simply – are unlikely to have both the capacity and expertise to be the only ones to provide relevant guidance through the cultural changes required to embed these same plans. Why does that mean in plain English? It takes a group effort to sustain change. That alone requires honesty and self-reflection at the highest level within management but is also why empowering “inner CEOs” and focusing on utilising talent with a small ‘t’ helps to deliver ongoing and more permanent buy-in from employees.

Speaking to the 1% Podcast, Jeremy explained: “The scope and scale of transformational shift that leaders are dealing with is something I call ‘The Triple Now’. It’s a digital transformation that is happening, a workforce shift, and a piece in the middle of those that is about connectivity, new ways of working, and eco systems.

“All of these mean a leader can be stretched in areas that they potentially have zero capability in. And this is already a reason to include a sense of ‘how do we distribute leadership in a better way’ so that organisations can use the expertise and experience of people in their organisation in more strategic ways.”

Reverse mentoring

Reverse mentoring was one example given during the podcast episode. It has been used to impressive effect by Citibank where millennials have been invited into the boardroom to share their insights around technology and social media, which has the dual consequence of giving younger workers greater buy-in and a feeling of making an important contribution.

Human-centered leadership

Jeremy went on: “There is also a demand from employees for more human-centred leadership – more empathy-driven, more collective, and more empowering leadership. Employees are ready to help and want to be part of the solution. They don’t want to be told what to do all of the time.

“Saying that, leaders do need time. They are navigating uncertain futures right now so by empowering more people to think about what the next two or three years might hold, all this together allows for empowerment (of employees) to flourish.”

Jeremy’s book, The Inner CEO, includes specific tools, frameworks, and templates while providing a strong foundation for any leader looking for practical supports through the implementation of sustainable change in their organisation.

In creating a new sense of ownership, involvement, and trust within an organisation, such an environment will also serve as a motivational tool for its employees. Workers that feel part of the tribe will naturally have a vested interest beyond their specific duties, while the business will feel the benefit of being closer to clients, customers, industry trends, early warning signs, and potential opportunities alike.

There is a striking ‘work list’ that went viral a couple of years ago. Under the heading “10 Things That Require Zero Talent”, the creator wrote of actions we can all take to improve our work performance immediately and without any financial cost or training.

Nothing included on the list is revolutionary – Being on Time, Work Ethic, Effort, Body Language, Energy, Attitude, Passion, Being Coachable, Doing Extra, and Being Prepared. All very sensible, and all traits and characteristics that employers, managers, and executive recruiters love to recognise… and very often reward!

Talent or consistency

That list came to mind again when Justin Roethlingshoefer joined us for a brilliant episode of the 1% podcast in April 2022. A performance coach to elite athletes and executives, a bestselling author, and respected entrepreneur, Justin was a Performance Director at the National (Ice) Hockey League (NHL) in the US for over ten years – an experience that shaped his current areas of research and focus in ways that he didn’t quite expect.

Early on in the episode, Justin says the following: “Talent will get you noticed, consistency gets you paid.” Simple, and yet quite profound – especially in today’s world where talent seems, on the surface at least, to be what secures the high-end roles and accompanying salary and benefits package.

Justin explained that the comment was made to him as a young boy when he returned home after a performance that was not up to his usual standards in a hockey match. His father’s advice struck him deeply and led the aspiring athlete down a path of seeking to understand as much as possible about everything within his own control and what actually and practically impacted his capabilities on the ice each and every game.

Heart rate variability

Unfortunately for us all, there is no magic solution to consistent performance – be it on the sporting field, in the workplace, or elsewhere. Everyone’s capabilities are unique, but Justin has identified Heart Rate Variability (HRV) and how it changes as a person responds to stresses around them as an effective indicator of improvement potential.

Working with his research team, he has gone on to develop a framework of eight ‘controllables’ that help to positively affect a person’s HRV and, in turn, deliver more consistent performance. You can read more about Justin’s thinking and how HRV can be monitored here.

No ‘controllable’ on this list will be brand new to regular readers of our 1% Extra articles. However, their effectiveness lies in the consistent implementation of small, yet sustainable changes under each of the headings. What’s the one thing you can do to improve your nutrition this week? It can be as easy as preparing your breakfast or lunch the night before when you’ve more time to consider what is suitable rather than what is convenient, and then making that part of your weekly habits.  

Simple processes and being persistent in following them as part of an established and regular routine will benefit your performance in the longer term. And we already know some of this to be true in our own lives – we feel better when we eat well, a regular sleep routine is encouraged for adults as well as children, and we’ve often heard about the importance of drinking water as well as regular exercise and movement in our life.

Think of it within a work context. The processes and checks we put in place within project management methodologies are there to ensure that outcomes and quality standards are achieved regularly in work. Getting relevant structures in place, having robust review processes, and a mechanism to respond to blockers are several of the key components in any good project, and have a direct and telling impact on the final outputs and outcomes.

Incremental improvements

All eight “controllables” listed are considerations that we have the ability to change and improve at our own pace. And that’s the central argument of Justin and his team of researchers: attaining consistent performance and improving our individual capabilities generally is much more about focusing on ourselves and making incremental improvements rather than trying to influence broader factors outside of our sphere of control.

To make changes, awareness or a deep understanding of our strengths and capabilities is essential, but so, too, is not trying to transform your entire work life in one sweeping overhaul. People who are perceived as ‘greats’ – be it in sport, business, leadership – tend to have an innate awareness of their ability, a motivation to forge ahead into new territory, while also being curious and eternal students. These traits, though, are frequently matched by discipline, consistency, and adaptability.

None of our elite athletes or respected business leaders are slouches that fell into their career path by accident – they’ve found an effective balance between capacity and the capability to deliver time and again. As Justin remarks on the 1% podcast, “the world of average is full of talent”. What separates average performers from those recognised as amongst the “greats” though is consistency as well as the ability to “level up” or push themselves forwards to achieve even more. As employers and recruiters, it’s also our responsibility to ensure we reward those that deliver consistently!

We all know that teamwork and cohesion are useful in a team or work environment. But when taken too far, at times groupthink can evolve and have negative consequences (Gokar,2013).

Groupthink occurs when people override their common sense desire to present alternatives, critique positions, or express unpopular opinions.  It is common for team members suffering from groupthink to make poor decisions and to overlook possible pitfalls, which can lead to disastrous consequences for the company.  A working definition used in Psychology Today is “Groupthink occurs when a group of well-intentioned people make irrational or non-optimal decisions that are spurred by the urge to conform or the discouragement of dissent.”

Background

This term originated with Irving Janis in his classic 1971 paper on how group decision-making led to historic U.S. foreign policy blunders.

In examining how group behaviour, biases, and pressures influence group decisions, Janis sought to explain why highly intelligent groups often made bad decisions. There is widespread acceptance of group think in many fields, such as social psychology, organisational theory, and group decision-making sciences.

According to Janis, groupthink is caused by a number of structural factors, including the cohesiveness of a decision-making group, its formal rules, its leadership, the social homogeneity of its members, and their context or situation.  He went to explain the impact on decision making :

“The advantages of having decisions made by groups are often lost because of powerful psychological pressures that arise when the members work closely together, share the same set of values and, above all, face a crisis situation that puts everyone under intense stress.”  (1972)

The signs of groupthink are not always obvious, especially in a cohesive team that is used to working together.  However groupthink can be characterised by the following signs and symptoms:

As a result of groupthink, decisions are made ignoring possible alternatives and focusing on a narrow number of goals, ignoring risks associated with a particular course of action. Alternative information is not sought or the available information is considered in a biased manner. As soon as alternative solutions are rejected, contingency plans are neglected, and alternatives are forgotten.

According to Janis, groupthink is most prevalent in the following conditions:

How to avoid Groupthink and Conformity in the Workplace

Groupthink can lead to people ignoring important information, resulting in poor decisions. A situation like this can be damaging even in minor situations, but in certain circumstances it can have far more dire consequences. Therefore it is beneficial to identify groupthink and be aware of measures that can limit its affects.

As a means of preventing groupthink, proposals have included introducing multiple channels for dissent in decision making and mechanisms for maintaining the openness and heterogeneity of a group (Bang  and Frith, 2017).  Where possible slowing down the decision making process can help, by critically evaluating ideas, and including as many levels and layers as possible, in the decision making process.  Engaging external advice can help as well as informed leadership that encourages open feedback and creates an environment where all voices are heard equally.  Encourage open feedback and an environment where all voices matter is required in order to prevent groupthink.

More on Conformity

References

Bang D, Frith CD. Making better decisions in groups. R Soc Open Sci. 2017;4(8):170193. doi:10.1098/rsos.170193

Gokar H. Groupthink principles and fundamentals in organizations. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in Business. 2013;5(8):225-240.

 Janis, I. L. (1971). Groupthink among policy makers

Janis, I. L. (1972). Victims of Groupthink: A Psychological Study of Foreign Policy Decisions and Fiascoes. 1972.

Janis, I. L. (1973). Groupthink and group dynamics: A social psychological analysis of defective policy decisions. Policy Studies Journal, 2(1), 19.

There is more to leadership than being the smartest or most charismatic individual in a room. Leaders influence and inspire through action. They determine the company culture from the top-down. But what truly makes a leader great? And why is great leadership so important?  

According to the 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer, 1 in 3 employees don’t trust their leaders. This lack of trust in leadership has a direct impact on retention, job satisfaction, and overall performance, which influences the company’s success. In fact, 79% of employees quit their jobs due to a lack of appreciation from leaders. It is no doubt a great leader directly impacts the business, for better or for worse.

What are the traits of a good leader?

  1. Emotional Intelligence: This includes self-awareness, empathy, communication skills, and the ability to be vulnerable and ask for help when needed. Emotional intelligence means recognizing that different people require different styles of management and adjusting based on the individual.
  2. Competence: Leaders must know what they are doing and be able to do it well. You cannot get a promotion or get to the top of a company without having the skills to do the job itself. Competence is an essential leadership trait.  
  3. Charisma: It’s not always what you say that matters; it’s how you say it. Charisma on its own is not enough for great leadership, but a great leader does need the skills to inspire others. Martin Luther King Jr. is an example of a great leader because of his ability to move people in an authentic way.
  4. Vision: A great leader needs to be able to see the big picture. Vision enables the leader to make strategic, long-term decisions, especially in the heat of the moment. Having a clear vision keeps a leader motivated and helps them stay true to their mission.
  5. Integrity: Integrity is essential to great leadership. This requires honesty, openness, and trust. It means a leader acts in ways that align with their values and has a strong moral compass.
  6. Decisiveness: Often, leaders will have to make the decisions that others don’t want to make. Great leaders are also not afraid to ask for input to ensure they have all the information necessary before finalizing a decision.
  7. Innovative: It’s important for great leaders to be innovative and to inspire innovation in their employees. It may be comfortable to follow the status quo, but greatness doesn’t come from comfort. Innovation is also profitable. According to a Booz & Co. report, innovation organizations saw 11% more revenue and 22% more growth than their counterparts. 
  8. Risk-Taking: Innovation also requires taking risks. Risk-taking does not mean reckless decision-making, however. It means having the ability to make an informed and calculated risk, assessing whether the cost outweighs the benefit. Further, research shows that leaders who take risks are better liked by their employees, regardless of the outcome of their decision. 
  9. Invest in People: To lead people is to invest in them. All great leaders value their employees and their continuous growth as well as their own. The people are the company’s greatest asset, and great leaders know this.
  10. Holistic Health: A burnt-out leader is an absent leader. Those who care about their overall well-being such as their diet, exercise, sleep, and work-life balance are not only helping their own performance but are setting a better example for their employees. Moreover, research shows that self-care improves performance and productivity.

These ten traits are some of the core values of great leadership. All of these are important to inspire loyalty, trust, and retention in the workplace.

Lastly, what’s most essential is a leader who cares, whether that’s about their people, the business, or their overarching mission. Passion is contagious, and that is what true leadership inspires. 

In a pre-pandemic world, employees would often show their dedication to the job by being the first one in the office, the last one to leave, and rarely taking breaks. Busyness was a sign of the high achiever. Now, with hybrid working conditions of both remote and in-person, the method might not be the same, but the mindset is still prevalent. The ideal employee is one who is always ‘on’.

For an executive, the need to be busy might look like an inability to shut off, constantly checking emails on the weekends, or refusing to delegate work. But this is not sustainable. The cultural obsession with productivity has led to an epidemic of burnout and stress in the workplace, and it’s impacting quality of life as well as businesses.

What are the signs of burnout? And why should leaders care about the well-being of their employees and themselves?

The World Health Organisation classifies burnout as a ‘syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed’. It lists the three characteristics of burnout as:


In a study by Personio, 38% of employees in the UK and Ireland are looking to change roles due to toxic workplace culture, bad work-life balance, and a lack of career progression. This turnover rate could cost businesses nearly €17 million. In fact, companies in the States are seeing a similar trend with a ‘record number’ of employees quitting their jobs. McKinsey & Co. refers to it as ‘The Great Attrition’. Burnout always existed, but the pandemic has exacerbated its effects.

Employee burnout is a huge problem that affects not only the employee themselves, but the business, the leaders, and the broader culture. And it’s costing millions.

Busyness can lead to burnout because of the ‘tunnelling’ effect. According to a Harvard Business Review article, researchers describe this phenomenon as the inability to focus on anything but the immediate task at hand. In this state, there’s no bandwidth to focus on long-term goals or strategic planning. It’s exhausting. The first step to breaking free of this cycle is to recognize the signs of burnout and admit that something needs to change.

As burnout and stress are cumulative and chronic, a few ‘bad’ days in a row should not be ignored. Nutrition, sleep, and physical exercise play a huge role in overall well-being. It’s important to get a minimum of seven hours of sleep a night, eat a well-balanced diet, and move the body regularly. Meditation and mindfulness are also proven to improve the effects of stress when practised consistently.

Another way to combat burnout, which on the surface may seem counterintuitive, is scheduling downtown and relaxation into the workday. A Scientific American article explains that ‘downtime replenishes the brain’s stores of attention and motivation, encourages productivity and creativity, and is essential to achieve our highest levels of performance’. Downtime can include a meditation practice, but it can also be taking a midday nap or a walk outside.

For a company culture to drastically change, leaders need to create new models for productivity and success. Perhaps the ideal employee is one who prioritises their mental health and physical well-being while getting the job done. Leaders can also encourage their employees to create personal boundaries. There will be times when an executive or manager sends an email at 9 p.m., but it does not mean that they require an immediate response.

Lastly, burnout is often a symptom of an underlying issue. There are simple ways to combat burnout, such as proper diet and nutrition, sleep, and setting boundaries, but there could also be another cause that requires deeper reflection.

In a study on how the most successful people conquer burnout, Bismarck Lepe, CEO, talks about the importance of mission in relation to burnout:

‘I don’t believe “burnout” is a function of the amount or intensity of work one takes on. Rather, feeling burned out is usually caused by a misalignment between the individual and their daily tasks’.

Bismarck Lepe, CEO Wizeline

Stability, benefits, and healthcare are all important aspects of a job, but if a person hates their work, it can also have an array of negative health impacts. The solution to burnout might be less about finding work-life balance and more about finding work that is fulfilling.

Burnout may be leading to a million-dollar loss for businesses, but the price on quality of life is equally bad, if not worse. If leaders can address burnout and stress and create better working conditions, there will be more attraction and retention rather than attrition. Change needs to start from the top-down for the culture to shift.

Finding the right leadership talent is increasingly important in developing competitive advantage. Research published in the Harvard Business Review suggests that those with superior talent strategies will have a greater likelihood of excelling in their sectors. Getting recruitment right is seen as critical to this. These findings are also supported by respected management consultancy firm, McKinsey & Company. McKinsey undertook research identified that, “Superior talent is up to eight times more productive”. What is more, the productivity gap between average performers and high performers is at its greatest when job roles are of very high complexity – such as in the case of executive roles.

Choosing between executive search services in Ireland essential, especially since the right leadership in key roles incfluence the productivity of your teams.

In Ireland, the executive search process has distinct differences from that in other nations. This is due to the culture and importance of local networks. Understanding local company knowledge is key to a successful executive search in Ireland. The information that follows will help with understanding how the executive search process works in Ireland, and how this differs to other places.

A great executive search Ireland is made up of 12 steps, and these are now explained.

Executive search in Ireland – the 12 steps

Step 1: Establish client needs

At the outset, a meeting between the client and the executive search team is required to identify client requirements. These will include an overview of the role and time frame for filling the post. The team will ask questions to find out more about the company. They will also probe the client to gain an understanding of first thoughts about the type of person who might be a good match for the role.

Step 2: Analysis phase

Further analysis is required at this early stage to maximise the search opportunity. The executive search firm will analyse the company culture to ensure the candidate selected will be an appropriate fit. This is one of the most important factors, supported by a study showing that 84% of recruiters believe this to be the case. Other than this, further analysis may also include introductions to others in the executive team to gain a clear understanding of the personality profile needed to succeed.

Step 3: Clarify budget

Understanding the benefit structure for Executive Searches in Ireland is very helpful in developing the right budget. In turn, having the right budget is important so that the role will be compelling for the right candidates. The search firm can help advise the client in this area to ensure the benefit structure is right for the position. Expertise in the Irish recruitment market is very beneficial in this regard.

Step 4: Development of a person specification

Following the analysis the person specification is built. This includes key information that will help with an executive search in Ireland.  This is especially important for leadership positions, as they will influence the culture and productivity of your team. It achieves this by pinpointing the essential and desirable skills and qualifications that are sought. It also describes the role and responsibilities that the successful candidate will perform.

Getting this right is critical as it shapes the whole recruitment process. It also needs to attract optimal candidates and deter those that are unsuitable. When done well, this document helps to define the employer value proposition. A well thought out person specification will provide indicators to potential candidates about the company’s vision, what it values and the type of person that will succeed.

Step 5: Scan networks

Local networks can be a very useful source of information for executive search in Ireland. Through drawing on these, it may be possible to identify suitable targets that would be a good fit. A locally based firm with a strong network has the advantage in knowing where to look. Our services are often more effective because of our well established network of leadership talent. Given that private networking is a key tool that executive recruitment firms use in identifying suitable candidates, it is worth asking some questions about the company’s networks before selecting a firm.

Step 6: Review local and international talent

Both local and international leadership talent opportunities should be reviewed. With a population of just 4.9 million, Ireland has a relatively small pool of leadership talent to draw on, and in some cases “glaring talent shortages. For this reason it is beneficial to consider international talent too. A good executive search team will have a network that includes both local and international leadership talent in a variety of sectors, or in the case of a specialised firm, in the industry they focus on.

If you are using an Executive Search Services Company in Ireland, make sure to ask them about their network.  This is one of the strongest points of working with Lincoln.

 Step 7: Build a short list

Further search strategy techniques are deployed to develop a suitable short list for the client. This requires market analysis and reviewing tools like LinkedIn to find candidates. The firm also scans its database of candidates to pinpoint suitable matches. Important areas of focus include whether the potential candidate is a good cultural fit, and the level of interest and commitment they may have towards this new opportunity. This helps with analysing turnover intentions. Given that the recruitment process is so expensive, this is very important. All of this research, along with the analysis of networks and local and international potential will be utilised to build and refine a short list of the right leadership talent.

Step 8: Candidate qualification and refinement of short list

Candidate qualification is required to narrow down possibilities. Through a meticulous matching process, the candidate list is whittled down to those that are a close fit. This includes interviews with potential candidates to establish capability and interest. A basic referencing process is also performed for any candidates that will be put forward.

Step 9: Handover of short list

One of our core services is to organize the list to make it efficient for you to conduct the next phase of hiring.  A short list is passed on to the client for the recruitment process to continue. By this point, there will be no more than five potential candidates. More detailed referencing checks are performed at this stage. Before the client makes a final decision, the executive search firm can weigh in if needed.

Step 10: Make offer

Once the client selects their candidate, the executive search firm will make an offer to that individual. At this level there is normally some negotiation around the benefits package and start dates, among other factors.  One of the services that your search  team can help with is going over these offer details. Good executive search firms will be experienced with helping the candidate and the company come to an agreement that works for both parties.

Step 11: Onboarding

One of the incremental services that the executive search firm may include is helping with onboarding process of your new leadership talent. This varies depending on the contract agreed with the executive search firm at the outset. Onboarding services are often seen as separate from recruitment, when in fact they are integral to the process. Recent research in Ireland shows that almost 50% of employees leave a job within a year. In a nation that is at near-full employment it is a job-seeker’s market. Getting onboarding right is important to help the candidate feel comfortable in the early days at the new firm, and to pinpoint any issues that arise in the initial period.

Step 12: Follow up

The very best executive search services includes one final step. This is follow up with the client and the candidate to review how it is going. Following up with both helps ensure satisfaction is achieved. Similarly to onboarding, it will help identify issues that might otherwise be hidden, leading to executive turnover if not addressed. Good follow up also allows the executive search firm to take on board any feedback and improve.

Conclusion

Following the 12 steps of executive search Ireland helps to ensure that the right candidate is hired. From having a clear understanding of the job role and person needed from the outset, through to onboarding and follow up, locally based executive search teams in Ireland are well-placed to help.

As a specialists executive search services firm in Ireland, we have the local knowledge that will ensure your executive search in Ireland runs smoothly. We can draw on our extensive local networks to help identify top talent for your executive team, no matter the industry. Get in touch to see how we can add value to your executive search process.