Leadership: Issues and Challenges in Modern Industries
Leadership: Issues and Challenges in Modern Industries
The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.
Albert Einstein
Leaders of today's corporations must cope with a unique set of challenges. Technological, social, and economic forces compel leaders to address these issues in order to stay ahead of the competition. Some of these challenges include:
Globalization of business leading to cross cultural competency requirements greater demands of travel
Geographic shifts in economic power
Growth of strategic alliances
An accelerating avalanche of information and democratization of access to information
Daily innovations in technology
Changing demographics and a changing workforce
Changing expectations of a more educated workforce
Flattening of organizations, increased workloads and expanding skill requirements
The workplace will remain largely unchanged until the increased presence of women ushers in more significant cultural change.This requires a will at leadership level to take on the diversity challenge. It requires leadership to confront a traditionally narrow interpretation of diversity. It also requires initiatives to test and bring to the fore hidden and often irrational and unconscious assumptions regarding women's ability to operate in senior business environments (Sinclair, 2004a, 2004b; Meyerson & Fletcher, 2000).
The US non-profit research and advisory organisation, Catalyst, has made an explicit commitment to advance the position of women in business (www.catalystwomen. org). Catalyst regularly awards companies who report notable achievements in the advancement of women. Commenting on the attributes of its 2003 winners, Catalyst President Shiela Wellington stated:
The enlightened CEO builds a strategic vision and business case for gender diversity, sets concrete goals to meet those commitments, holds management accountable for achieving diversity goals, reports on
The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.
Albert Einstein
Leaders of today's corporations must cope with a unique set of challenges. Technological, social, and economic forces compel leaders to address these issues in order to stay ahead of the competition. Some of these challenges include:
Globalization of business leading to cross cultural competency requirements greater demands of travel
Geographic shifts in economic power
Growth of strategic alliances
An accelerating avalanche of information and democratization of access to information
Daily innovations in technology
Changing demographics and a changing workforce
Changing expectations of a more educated workforce
Flattening of organizations, increased workloads and expanding skill requirements
The workplace will remain largely unchanged until the increased presence of women ushers in more significant cultural change.This requires a will at leadership level to take on the diversity challenge. It requires leadership to confront a traditionally narrow interpretation of diversity. It also requires initiatives to test and bring to the fore hidden and often irrational and unconscious assumptions regarding women's ability to operate in senior business environments (Sinclair, 2004a, 2004b; Meyerson & Fletcher, 2000).
The US non-profit research and advisory organisation, Catalyst, has made an explicit commitment to advance the position of women in business (www.catalystwomen. org). Catalyst regularly awards companies who report notable achievements in the advancement of women. Commenting on the attributes of its 2003 winners, Catalyst President Shiela Wellington stated:
The enlightened CEO builds a strategic vision and business case for gender diversity, sets concrete goals to meet those commitments, holds management accountable for achieving diversity goals, reports on