Yet, audacious leadership means having the ability to lead with an unwavering sense of purpose, to bet against the consensus and stand apart from others while balancing strength with compassion and humility.

It requires an unwavering mindset that connects leaders to their people and customer with a ‘head on–heart-on’ mentality, being hard on the problem and empathic on the person.

My belief is that many people are challenged today in trying to  find quick fixes to new issues in a unstable world but have become immobilized to act due to financial pressures/lack of staff or resources/ and cannot deal with any further disruptions. However, while it is not necessary to disrupt every aspect of one’s business, every business is being disrupted and contributing to change.

And while technology  and AI is one of the largest disruptors, the biggest successes of the future will be built on collaboration. Audacious leaders are the  enablers not just the drivers.

So the question is how can leaders work with an unwavering sense of audacious purpose  underpinned by conviction, courage and care and do it well?

Firstly, an audacious leadership mindset will have to have first believe in something enough that they can bet against the consensus and show radical transparency and focus in what they believe is to be right and done. If people can’t demonstrate their vision or how they can bring others along, conviction alone will not be enough. They need  to have the conviction of others to fully endorse and implement ideas. And if they do not always agree it still means people need to fully understand the scope and intent of the work they will be asked to do or be part of under the banner of the company. But it also means that an audacious  mindset must accept and even expect that within the spectrum of leadership there will be many hues and most certainly they will challenge, surprise, frustrate or inspire their staff or stakeholders and as such they must be willing to work with a wide variety of options and opportunities.

That’s leadership. Like it or not.

Today’s leader is no longer one dimensional in style or behaviour. No longer do staff wait to be lead. They want autonomy but require purpose. Customers too have little tolerance or patience for mediocrity so the onus is upon leaders to give provide insight and so customers (and staff) have their expectations met quickly.

Secondly, an audacious leader must be courageous to ‘swallow a frog’ every so often and do what may be uncomfortable for them. Sometimes that means recognising it can be difficult to address resolve issues that cause pain or distress to others such as terminating jobs, changing work expectations or calling out behaviours that need changing, but always mindful of  conducting the communications  with humility.

Leaders have to stretch their communication capacity and capability and give voice to their passions, convictions and do with it courage even when they feel their most vulnerable.

Audacious leaders will lead best by showing how much they care, and that means showing vulnerability and resilience even in the face of tougher competition and further unexpected events.

Are you an AUDACIOUS LEADER?

While Covid-19 has presented mankind with unparalleled challenges it has also presented us with a perfect time to resent how we work, what we work on and how we behave. Melissa Swift Global Leader for Digital Solutions, Korn Ferry cites- “Fit-for-purpose is no longer good enough. Organisations and leaders need to become fit-for-future.”

How true this is and the Five Disciplines of a Leader’s Mindset© will help leaders become future ready and future prepared for what’s ahead. Here’s how!

Discipline # 1 Trust

Think of building Trust like building a trust account in a financial sense. It can take a long time to accrue wealth and everyone looks forward to receiving regular interest or dividends along the way. Yet one withdrawal that is not well thought through can cost us the lot. When it comes to working with people trust works the same way. Every deposit we make as we build our relationships must demonstrate we are building a strong foundation that will keep us safe and secure. Yet if we fail to deliver on our promises, don’t stay true to what and who matters, breach confidentiality or ethics or offend in even some small it can mean starting all over again or in some cases, never being able to build the trust again.

People’s behaviour is goal directed and in working towards that goal they need to feel secure in trusting the process, procedure and people who help them solve their pain, challenge, opportunity or concern. Trust brings us closer to achieving our goals.

Discipline #2 – Clarity

The hardest thing about clarity is that very few things in life and business are clear and easy to understand – from words to behaviours and emotions. We seem to be experts at complicating what we say rather than what we mean and while unintentional end up confusing others and getting frustrated or disappointed.

I call this Simplex-ity. It is what happens when we take simple messages and deliberately complicate language in order to appear more ‘intelligent’ or ‘worthy of being listened to’. Sadly many professionals feel they have to embellish their language thinking it will impress others rather than trying to be clear, simple and concise. The premise being the more sophisticated our language is the smarter we are. In truth it works out that this the very thing that diminishes our ability to relate to others and build trust and relationships.

Leaders who make it easy for the others to understand their presentations leave no room for misinterpretation and make people feel more connected, valued and engaged. It takes discipline to be concise and not convoluted!

Discipline # 3 – Compassion

If there is to be an upside to the pandemic of 2020, it would be in the area of human compassion. People globally are showing more compassion to each other now than the world has ever seen before. This synchronous experience is something everyone will relate to in some way as there are no bystanders in this extraordinary time.

2020 has humanised the world enabling people to take off their metaphorical mask of strength and put on the same cloth one as everyone else. People have become more emotionally intelligent, more empathic and certainly more aware of how they operate under stress, fatigue or pressure and try harder to make sense of how they will go forward individually and collectively. For now anyway people are more patient, more tolerant and less judgemental than they have been in the past, as everyone recognises that they like others all share fears, frustrations, disappointments and ambiguity as a result of Covid 19 and as such are showing more compassion. Will it last I hear you say? It is up to each and everyone leader to embrace the compassion and care for themselves and each other.

As such, the true strength of a leader going forward will not just be in his or her ability to develop strategy but in their ability to harness true compassion for how their people are faring. Showing compassion is now a sign of the strength of a leader’s mindset. It is welcomed as part of a leader’s skillset so let’s hope we don’t have short memories and go back to old behaviours that prevent us from showing compassion.

Discipline #4 – Commitment

Before we talk about commitment we have determine what we need to commit to and why those things matter to us, our families and our businesses. It is of no use to commit to something that does not stretch us physically or mentally in some way other wise it would be meaningless. The discipline of Commitment means taking a long hard look at some of the biggest challenges faced by you as a leader today. It is worth considering things like

1. What are the non negotiable behaviours that you will not stand for in the future?
2. How you will be your authentic self and commit to being true to what matters to you?
3. What will you do to ensure you are giving and receiving relevant and real feedback in a timely way that will truly increase your effectiveness.
4. How will you create wellness for you and your team mentally, physically and spiritually.
5. What is the commitment you will make to yourself that enables you to call out for help or support when you are at your least resilient?

So who will you share these commitments with? When will do share them?

Discipline #5 Connection

Connecting to others in meaningful ways will both enrich opportunities and support eachother and business. It has gone from a ‘nice to do” to a ‘need to do” skill so people across companies, cultures and generations can create new purpose and partnerships while bringing together client and provider. It is incumbent upon all leaders to empower people to take on new challenges in a safe to fail environment so everyone can connect and communicate in new and often uncharted ways. Here are 16 ways to help you connect with your staff, clients and customers! Enjoy!

So why is it that new leaders so often struggle, and that the much coveted role is not all they expected and begin to doubt their own capabilities? They might even begin to wonder if they actually wanted that position they worked so hard for, after all.

This situation is more common than you might think.

A New Leader

Let’s take the example of John – John is in his thirties, well-liked and respected, modest and all round ‘Mr Nice Guy’. He’s just been promoted to lead the team he was part of. The team is delighted for him and he’s relishing the new challenge.

Within weeks, John is struggling. He’s trying to reassure the team that he’s still ‘one of them’ and that he hasn’t been changed by the promotion. But he’s finding it very hard to give negative feedback or take any form of disciplinary action and he can see that some of the team are starting to take advantage of that and productivity is slipping. He’s worried that some of the team are losing respect for him.

Annual performance reviews are on the horizon, and John’s dreading them. He knows that some of the team are going to be disappointed, or even angry at their ratings. He wants to be a good leader, but he’s worried he’ll no longer be seen as Mr Nice Guy, and will turn into a Horrible Boss.

Ten Tips for Success

What can John do to turn the situation around? Here’s ten proven leadership strategies that will ensure his new role is a success:

1. Leadership Mindset

Many newly promoted leaders underestimate the shift in mindset that is required when they become a leader. They’ve focused all their efforts for so long on actually getting to this position and not given enough thought to what it really means.

John has to be 100% clear in his mind that he wants to lead and to create a presence around his new role. If he is serious about leading, he cannot continue to play in the ‘team member’ space. If he finds himself wanting to be there, perhaps he wasn’t ready after all for this leadership role. It’s a tough conversation he has to have with himself, or his coach, but an essential one. He needs to clear away any cobwebs in his head that are keeping him in the place he was before and inhibiting him from embracing life as a leader.

It essential that before stepping into the role, John thinks about the type of leader he wants to be. A great way to do this is for John to ask his team what qualities they admire in a leader. These may be completely different from what he perceives as good leadership, and this process will also help him understand his team members’ values.

2. Company Help

It shouldn’t all be down to John himself though – there is an important role for the company to play too, in preparing John for his promotion. All too often, new leaders like John are left to ‘work it out for themselves’. If companies are serious about developing great leaders, they need to provide support and guidance. One of the things that John could have done when it became apparent that he would be asked to take on this new role, is to ask the company what help they could provide to prepare him for what is required, appropriate and effective.

This support is particularly needed if the person is going to be leading the team they were part of – and it’s one of the primary reasons that staying as ‘one of the gang’ becomes (for some) an easy default.

With leadership, somehow companies expect people to already ‘be’ the role before they really understand ‘how’ to. Yet with a bit of support, they could produce even better leaders.

3. Embrace the grey

Being a leader and being a good guy are not mutually exclusive. Being the leader does not mean you cannot be liked. John can do both, but he needs to address that voice in his head that is telling him that he can only be a good guy if he plays like everyone else in the team.

John feels that by being the boss, he is no longer part of the team. He needs to realise that he is still very much part of the team, but that he is now contributing in a different role.

He must understand that acting like a leader does not mean a complete change of personality into Mr Horrible Boss. It’s not that black and white – team good, boss bad. There are multiple shades of grey in between and John has to find the one that suits him.

4. Step up to generate respect

John needs to create presence as a leader – people quickly lose respect for a leader who doesn’t step up to the role.

He needs to affirm his leadership position by being seen as an advocate, a clear thinker and a trusted advisor. He needs to practice a new language of positivity, which will encourage others to change the way they see him.

John was well-liked as a team member, and there is absolutely no reason why his team should not respect him as a leader, as long as he steps up and clearly defines his role.

John is naturally humble, which is a strength, because it is important to be relatively low key during the early learning phase, while he builds his credibility. Stepping up doesn’t mean that he suddenly knows it all, and his team will respect him for taking time to learn.

5. Define the common goal

Teams work well when everyone is working towards a clear, common goal. So John needs to embrace purpose driven leadership, so that every team member can align around the company vision.

This will help John to shift the focus in his relationship with his friends/colleagues from the personal to performance. It puts the emphasis on the company and team goals to which both he and his colleagues are bound. By doing this, John will build a build a collaborative workplace that takes accountability for its behaviours and actions.

In sport, when a member of a team is made captain, the team members are generally accepting because the goals are understood by all. Management responsibility is more complicated because the goals are often not as clearly defined and articulated.

John needs to work on clarifying and communicating goals that his team members can relate to, understand and work towards.

6. Give continuous feedback

One of the most important things John can do is to make an immediate start on having conversations about how the team is doing. It’s essential not to wait until annual appraisals before he gives feedback.

A leader needs to deliver feedback continuously. If people don’t know the impact they’re having, or where they’re slipping, that’s not their fault. It’s up to the leader to tell them. It’s important not to wait for formal feedback appraisals to have those important one-to-one conversations with the team. In fact, maybe John needs to think of it as “feedforward” rather than feedback!

By delivering feedback every day or week, it becomes just a collaborative conversation to make sure we’re all heading towards the right goals. John can do it in his natural, personable style. This ongoing, consistent conversation with team members will help John get that black and white idea that he can only be Mr Nice Guy or Mr Horrible Boss out of his head.

Appraisals shouldn’t be the time he goes from being their mild and meek peer to suddenly ‘putting on the boss mask’ and hitting them over the head, telling them they haven’t been doing a great job.
No-one can be Mr Nice Guy when they’re delivering nasty surprises, and John can eliminate surprise from annual reviews, through ongoing feedback in the months and weeks prior.

The other thing John needs to remember about feedback is it’s not just about telling people what they could be doing better. He needs to ind ways to give positive feedback – most people don’t rate themselves highly enough. May team members are starved of positive acknowledgement and will welcome it warmly.

7. Ask for Feedback

As well as giving feedback, some leaders find it useful to ask for feedback from the team, so that they can test how they are doing. This could be done anonymously to make the team more comfortable and to ensure complete honesty.

8. Become a champion for your team

Team members look to their leader for guidance, for clarity, for advice. They turn to their leader to help them navigate their own career journey.

So John should let his team know that he sees his role as not only fulfilling his own/the company goals, but that he is there to help them, his colleagues, succeed in their respective roles. He should position himself as a facilitator to their success.

Because of his relationships with his colleagues, they will value John letting them know that his door is always open to them if they wish to talk. He might sit down with each of his direct reports to discuss their personal goals and how he can help them achieve them. In this way he can turn the potential difficulty of friendship, into an advantage where, because he knows them well, he strives for his colleagues’ success. This will help him build trust and respect in his new role.

9. Be authentic, open, honest

Team members don’t want their leaders to paint rainbows. They don’t want a sugar-coated, fairy tale version of the truth and for their leader to tell them that everything is wonderful.

No-one wins friends and influences people by not giving them honest feedback. If John can be open and honest with his team, he will gain their respect. They too will feel respected and valued if John can give them guidance that is clear, concise, constructive and timely.

John needs to focus on being true to his own style, being his authentic self and doing the good work that’s in front of him. He needs ensure that his actions are aligned to his values and his message, behaviours, and tone are always consistent. It’s important to do as he says he will do, and to model the behaviours he expects from the team.

10. Tweak as you go

Continuously ‘tweaking’ things is often far more effective than periodic massive changes. So as part of the process of giving and receiving feedback, John should make small changes and improvements as soon as he sees the need for them. These will help him redefine his leadership style and show that he is striving to be the best leader he can be.

The outcome

One year on…

John used the ten tips. He quickly saw that he had a big obstacle in the path to success and that the only one that could shift it was him.

He examined and readjusted his mindset, and decided that above all, he wanted to lead. He spoke positively, but honestly.

He was true to himself and found his authentic leadership style.

He communicated the company and team vision and united his colleagues in working to achieve it.
John started immediately with weekly conversations about how the team was doing, and they have come to value his constructive, clear, insightful feedback. He also asked them for feedback on how he was doing.

The previously dreaded appraisals contained no surprises, and the team took away key points for improvement which they put into practice. John gives plenty of positive feedback and tells his team when they’re doing well.

The team has become more productive, and profits have taken an upturn accordingly. The team brings likes and respects their leader, knowing that he’s got their backs, is their advocate and will act in the best interests of the team and the company.

The team agree that John is a nice guy AND a great leader.

Yet, something funny happens in the psyche of the worker when it comes to older employees – which often has little to do with being revered and even less to do with humour. Sadly it illustrates that as a nation we are more interested in the celebrity factor that is often out of our reach than in our older workers who have contributed so much and are so close.

So if that is the case, why are we failing to adequately document the older workers’ knowledge, showcase their talents and celebrate them as mentors? Have we become so desensitised that we only want “new” while ‘old’ is irrelevant? Is it simply too hard or we just don’t know how?

As a starting point let’s get clear firstly who is the older Australian, after all? New research  undertaken by Westpac has revealed senior Australian business people believe, on average, 47 years old is when age related discrimination first becomes a problem for workers in Australian organisations.

Yet it would be fair to say that most business and professional people are at the peak of their career around this time. Many are in the best position they have ever been in to collaborate, connect and communicate their knowledge and experience and move the dial that points them to further success.

Here are five steps to go from Older to Bolder 

1. Take initiative and help create deliberate learning opportunities in early and tertiary education for different generations to cross pollinate and interact. It all begins with education, so volunteer your time and expertise in ways that will be help people understand the value of different perspectives and ages. If in a position to influence team or group work, ensure there is an equal representation from all ages so people consciously and unconsciously adapt to different ways of problem solving.

2. Ensure graduates and new inductees into organisations are buddied with at least three people from different generations. Keep these exchanges regular and as part of their KPI’s.

3. Provide external work experience opportunities for staff to spend time in different businesses so they are exposed to alternate practices and different ways of thinking in business. Make sure they communicate their learnings back into the organisation.

4. Set up Learning Forums in Open Spaces where staff can learn new skills (work or non work related topics) and hear about what staff can do in and outside their work environment. Allow people to spend time in discussion so there is a greater sense of comfort with different people and exposure to different ideas.

5. Disrupt traditional style meetings so everyone can chair or facilitate a meeting, champion an idea and share results in different ways. Encourage hot desk arrangements so people become more adept and comfortable at interacting.

While these five tips are practical strategies and take time to fully reap the rewards, it will also take a courageous and committed conversation that can present a commercial and business case to all levels of your people if you truly want to bring people together to collaborate rather than let people stagnate.

Ricky Nowak is a Certified HR Leadership Consultant, Speaker and Author with over 35 years business and corporate experience in leadership across Australasia, specialising in making good people great leaders.

The immediacy of their action today will demonstrate they are truly serving their people in the here and now. This means bringing more heart and empathy into their leadership and give people the opportunity to share their concerns and feel like they can eventually have some control over their lives and future. The sooner the better.

But it is not just up to the leaders to take action.

It’s everyone’s responsibility to be more courageous, compassionate and caring – first to themselves and then to each other.

Not easy, right? And it is probably not something you bargained for at this stage of your life. But then again, who would sign up for this at any stage of life, right? But here we all are. Signed up, or not, single or not, employed or not, secure or not. For the first time in history the world is synchronous in its experience. And while we may be in the same boat we are certainly in the same storm.

And if you’re wondering how you can continue to stay strong, resilient and emerge stronger perhaps the words of a five year old may be the words you need to hear right now so you can emerge stronger. Here’s what I learnt from my five year old grandson.

A while back in Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsula, Sammy and I watched in delight as big kids effortlessly glided from bar to bar with ease and confidence. I knew he was imagining what it would be like for him and by the look on his face I knew it wouldn’t be long before he mustered up the courage to try. I didn’t expect it to be so immediate, though I got to tell you!

Now if you are someone who loved the monkey bars as a child you will probably remember how exciting it was for you to feel strong and free.

However if you were more like me and associated monkey bars with burning arm pits, tan bark knees, chin and blistered palms you will understand how I felt when I watched him climb the ladder for the first time to ‘cross the crocodile river’. I instinctively knew he didn’t know how to swing or drop and given his small stature would probably not be easy for him to reach the bars.  It was like holding my breath underwater for far too long, and when I couldn’t hold my tongue and called out ‘I’LL HELP YOU! DON’T WORRY, Mr Independent replied with surprising tenacity in a voice I had not heard before “No Nana, I can do it – Trust me  –  I’ll be ok.” And if I fall, I will just get right back up and try again – Don’t worry about me, go and sit down and have your coffee”..

Ouch. That hurt.

I had wanted to rescue him from ‘my childhood memory’ of pain and see him safely across to the other side. But it was not to be.

More breath holding…. More coffee drinking…

And he was ok. In his time. In his way. Not mine. Not my experience. His.

Now as we are in the second half of 2020, I feel like we are all somewhere on those monkey bars, don’t you?

Some of us are still holding on with both hands to cold steel bars preferring the devil we know rather than face unearthing new ways to work or live. Not yet courageous to face dealing with fears or uncertainty with others outside our family. Perhaps this is a good time to seek help and let go of trying to manage or work through fears on your own.

Some of us have learnt to loosen our grip a little, have fallen, got up again, fallen, gotten up again and are holding new opportunities in our hands with palpable excitement or fear, looking back a little but focussing on next steps with caution and care

And some of us are already swinging more confidently between bars grateful for the support from those who nourish us financially, emotionally, spiritually and in kindness even in isolation.

And there are some of us who are in the delicate space in-between, like being suspended in mid air. It relishes the freedom of routine and rigour of yesterday and is not yet tomorrow. Ambiguity at its best… or worst.

So, here’s my message to you today.

Wherever you are on the monkey bars right now remember the words of a five year old who didn’t look down and say to yourself

“I can do it, trust me, I’ll be ok”

In these times we have to learn to trust ourselves to dig deep into our resilience bank and take out small sums of strength to use in different situations and even different days. The new normal has not yet landed and living in ambiguous times is equally challenging if not darn right scary. We must trust ourselves to make haste slowly and not catastrophise the future.

We need to give voice to our passions, convictions and do it with courage even when we feel our most vulnerable. We are saying that we constantly evolve, become more nimble, responsive and adaptive. And yes, we are also saying it’s not easy. Perhaps it never was. But one thing for sure, things have changed. So have we, so have our families, friends and customers. And we have no time to lose.

As Winston Churchill said…“Never let a good crisis go to waste” so it’s the best time in the world right now to take action of some kind and be prepared to emerge stronger by being courageous, compassionate and caring.

Why do we struggle with audacious leadership?

Part of the reason is that more traditional businesses resist standing up and standing out than those willing to lead with the positive audacity of learning new ways and be willing to get it wrong. Yes, making mistakes is hard when we are scrutinised for it. Yes, being a student and not being a master is even harder – especially when we are used to being known as an expert. And most of all, being committed to learning and exploring options takes time and as the clock ticks over 6 minutes it’s easy to default and use money as an excuse for not extending themselves ‘right now’.

The word on the street is that the legal industry feels this where it hurts most – the financial side of business. Largely traditional, risk averse and conservative, many firms seem stuck between the legacy of the past and breaking through to the future way of working. The additional problem is young talent is already thinking as futurists and wants to bring in new advances in communication and engagement. So perhaps it’s time for the traditionalists to shift slightly off the dance floor and onto the balcony and mentor future audacious leaders to ensure their firms remain in business and keep their staff before they become someone else’s.

However, easier said than done and my belief is that many people find it difficult to let go of things like hierarchy in favour of a more inclusive style of leadership – perhaps the fear of losing their foothold Perhaps people are largely unwilling to stretch their thinking and behaviour outside

the traditional or they don’t feel the industry or clients will support them and resist doing business with them.

As such they go with what has worked in the past and hope things will be OK. But hope is not a strategy. It is a four-letter word that often ends badly.

Herein lies a deeper problem.

Is new talent the answer?

Young talent coming into legal firms today do not want to simply hope they will have a career trajectory but rather strive to make their mark. No different from anyone else who aspired to grow their career, right? Even us back in the day… right?

One could say the traditional pecking order now is like a precarious deck of cards – one that may look strong to your clients or outside world but the foundations may not be so firm, as young talent take to their keyboards rather than the key boardrooms!

But before we shift off our seats a little in favour or upcoming talent, we need to ask if they have the capability to lead with an unwavering sense of purpose and as experienced leaders, how can we equip them with the competence to lead as audacious lawyers not just confident lawyers. That’s our role – irrespective of whatever our jobs are: we as audacious leaders must give them more than knowledge on the job and provide them with exceptional experiences not just explanations.

What’s the key to building audacious leaders?

The key to this is around mindset where no ambiguity exists in thought or behaviour, and we show our commitment to them and our clients. This mindset is around total focus and is resilient enough to withstand and work through criticism, complacency or external or internal influences that may try and sabotage our vision.

Audacious leaders must demonstrate through stronger negotiation, communication and influence techniques that their passion is not hot air, and their intent is purposeful not fanciful. We either get good or get going.

We are saying we need to stretch our capacity and capability outside the typical transactions we do every day.  We are saying we need to give voice to our passions, convictions and do it with courage even when we feel our most vulnerable.

We are saying that we constantly evolve, become more nimble, responsive and adaptive. And yes, we are also saying it’s not easy. Perhaps it never was. But one thing for sure, things have changed.

So have we, so have our clients and so have our staff.

Today and tomorrow’s leaders will lead best by being audacious. In the positive sense. In a timely sense, and in a way that is uniquely yours.

As Research Professor Brene Brown said “The core of authenticity is the courage to be imperfect, vulnerable and to set boundaries.” It is indeed time to take heed of these wise and simple words before promises are made that create unrealistic demands on staff or where people are intimidated or blamed for making errors.

While good leaders work alongside their people and let them know why they and the work that they do are valuable, audacious leaders involve their people in problem solving and opportunity making without trying to take the credit for everything themselves. In fact, audacious leaders ask others to be insatiably curious, seek alternatives and find new pathways of thinking for solving old problems. It’s not accommodating a new generation of young lawyers, it’s opening the doors to a new way of thinking.

The intent of audacious leadership is not fanciful, but purposeful.  Audacious leaders are open to getting the best results through honest collaboration and compromise. To do this, they exercise humility to allow communal success and network growth.

True, not easy when personalities and egos compete. True, not easy when the pressures are on and the clock is ticking and true when autocratic or long-standing leaders have run things for years in the same way and have been successful. But this is what we now know for sure. Whatever got those firms to be successful in the past will not guarantee them to be successful in the future.

Audacious leadership is not a passive experience. Those days are over.

How does AI impact on audacious leadership?
As lawyers face the new and already existing threat of technology out-performing them in many tasks, it seems that the gateway to keeping clients and staff will depend on them stepping up as energetic and intuitive audacious leaders. They will have to demonstrate they are seizing every chance to develop themselves and their teams in ways that provide exceptional experiences rather than complex explanations. They will have to move at a fast pace and improve their mentoring and networking – things that AI can not yet provide. Note the word “yet”.

It makes perfect sense to predict that we may well be headed fast and furiously toward an AI revolution in the same way we had an IT revolution.

How does audacious leadership affect your firm’s brand?

In preparation for the imminent changes in all professions, it is not surprising that many successful Australian companies are spending millions of dollars and hours every year in leveraging their profile and brand. Law firms too will need to immediately step up their marketing and branding efforts in a more visible and audacious manner if they wish to demonstrate they are breakthrough thinkers and initiators.

Clients and prospects are looking for their professional services providers, legal or otherwise, not only to have the sharpest professional skillset, but also be the sharpest in intuitively responding to current trends, preparing them for the future and keeping them ahead of the game.

Audacious leaders must work through current criticism, old ways of doing things, complacency and internal or external influences and come out wiser, more compassionate and more connected to local and global networks. This must be demonstrated through harnessing the collective energy and knowledge of other leaders in all areas of business and being more prepared to share and document their knowledge.

In summary having conviction and the courage to take a stand, while demonstrating compassion along the way is Audacious Leadership. Of course, there are those who may be happy with settling as a good leader and that’s ultimately up to them, but they may miss the fact that being audacious is what makes good leaders great.

If that’s not proof enough, then your firm may have a bigger problem.

For businesses who adopt the new way of working they will definitely achieve a distinctive competitive edge, reduce turnover, boost company culture, encourage engagement and creativity and stay relevant. They will become known as business partners and advisors rather than ‘law firms’ and respond to the needs of their internal customers with the same commitment as it does to its external customer. By virtue of their open-mindedness, they will empower staff to be innovative and creative giving clients the confidence they are dealing with cutting edge thinkers and solution providers more agile than ever. For those businesses who don’t adopt the new way of working in a diverse and inclusive way, they will reach a use-by date faster than a carton of A2 milk and the results will not be pleasant.

Research also shows that in Australia, workers in inclusive teams are 10 times more likely to be highly effective than workers in non-inclusive teams, and five times more likely to provide excellent customer/client service. So we really need to understand what diversity and inclusion is in order to get these best results. Yet let’s be careful not to confuse the terms and expect diverse teams on their own to be inclusive. That’s because businesses can be diverse but not truly inclusive. For example; yes, we hire a diverse range of people – we’re legally bound to. And we hire them expecting that they’ll be team players – that they’ll fit in with the rest of the crew. To cover ourselves, we give them a three-month trial period and leave them to it – and if they don’t settle in or we find they are not ‘like us’, well, sorry, “unfortunately it hasn’t worked out.” Is that inclusive? No, it isn’t. Strange, we hire them to think and be different and when they are we can find that unsettling.

Perhaps a more inclusive way, for example, would be to have both the employee and the business on a three-month trial, coming together at the end to mutually discuss the outcomes. It would support the new employee from day one, not just show them the ropes, the computer systems, and the OH&S policy, but really drilling down, connecting and communicating with them across all business channels. It would buddy them up, take them through the business strategy, and ask them for their input. It would ask them for what their version of ‘best practice’ is compared to what we currently do; it would be looking for ways to improve existing operations through new eyes and experiences.

As legal-preneurs and professional advisors it is our job to find out what makes others tick, what value will we bring to the table and what we can do to help us add more diversity into our operations. Most businesses now have a workplace diversity and inclusion policy in place of sorts but many may be just paying lip service to it without really understanding its true potential. Why? Because it is often a static policy and one that employees do not have the opportunity to add to as things change. Yet we know that encouragement and the opportunity to engage and keep engaging fosters growth. We also know that by encouraging staff to put forward their ideas, build the policy further and drive it across the business is continuous but it will result in greater loyalty as people feel more connected to their employer. And loyalty is something that AI can’t replace.
In conclusion, the Australian legal industry among other professional services is now swept up in this dynamic wave of new thinking and teams are becoming interdependent eco-systems that rely on candid opinion and radical transparency. And it’s working.

But are you doing your bit to ensure you have the right balance of Diversity and Inclusion in your workplace? And if not, what are you doing to rectify it?

If you want to reap the rewards of a diverse and inclusive workplace reach out now to Ricky Nowak on 0419 839 994 or ricky@rickynowak.com. She specialises in working with successful leaders and businesses in professional services across the APAC region as a leadership speaker, facilitator, and executive coach.

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