VUCA: Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity – an acronym used in 1987 to describe the unpredictability after end of the Cold War and is increasingly used to describe the unpredictable nature of the world today.
Not only has Industry 4.0 rapidly changed the business environment (artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, robotics, biotechnology, the Internet of Things, autonomous vehicles, etc.), but it also influences various aspects of our lives; from politics, terrorist attacks or natural disasters, and catastrophes such as COVID-19. We can hardly anticipate what new business realities will face our future leaders.
What kind of leadership will be most effective in VUCA reality?
Facing more and more uncertainly, leaders must be open to change, flexible to deal with ambiguity, creative, fast learners and risk-takers. There is of course one constant element in the VUCA world: PEOPLE.
Leaders must support their team by remaining focused, fast and flexible. Leaders should coach their employees by enhancing their skills in two of the most significant areas: agility and complex thinking. According to the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, HR should create leadership development plans on the assumptions based on:
Volatility can be countered with vision, because vision is even more vital in turbulent times. Leaders with a clear vision of where they want their organizations to be in three to five years can better weather volatile environmental changes such as economic downturns or new competition in their markets, for example, by making business decisions to counter the turbulence while keeping the organization’s vision in mind.
Uncertainty can be countered with understanding, the ability of a leader to slow down, look, and listen. To be effective in a VUCA environment, leaders must learn to look and listen beyond their functional areas of expertise in order to make sense of the volatility and to lead with vision. This requires communication with all levels of employees in their organization, development and demonstration of effective teamwork and collaboration skills.
Complexity can be countered with clarity, the deliberative process to make sense of the chaos. In a VUCA world, chaos comes swift and hard. Leaders, who can quickly and clearly tune into all of the minute associated with the chaos, can make better and more informed business decisions.
Finally, ambiguity can be countered with agility, the ability to communicate across the organization and to act quickly to apply solutions (Kinsinger and Walch, 2012). Vision, understanding, clarity, and agility are not mutually exclusive in the VUCA prime. Rather, they are intertwined elements that help managers become stronger VUCA leaders.
In the Harvard Business Review article, The Most Important Leadership Competencies, According to Leaders Around the World, researcher Sunnie Giles shared the results of “the first round of a study of 195 leaders in 15 countries over 30 global organizations.” In the study, “participants were asked to choose the 15 most important leadership competencies from a list of 74.”
The top 10 competencies were then grouped into 5 themes:
On the top of the uncertainty of the business environment, we have overlap of generational exchange. Contrarily to Millennials, who tend to expect quick success and have less propensity to stay put as they grow up in an age of endless options, the Z generation is even more tech-savvy and high expectation seekers, but they search for job security.
Tomorrow’s leaders need to build trust with their teams. Trust will continue to be the currency of the workplace. Being able to create a safe place for their teams will help Millennial leaders’ priorities to build a culture that appreciates both people and results.
Today’s market environment stresses speed, flexibility, and the ability to lead in uncertain situations.
Tomorrow demands high ethical standards, encouraging openness and great communication skills to managing firms successfully.
Dorota Serwinska, Partner
Anna Rudzinska, Partner
Poland
We asked more than 500 senior executives what they were most looking forward to when they return to the office, a staggering 28% of them said “Nothing.” Many said that they simply find their work environment unmotivating and can work better at home.
After a year of WFH, many people are genuinely worried about returning to their offices. They feel a real sense of dread and anxiety about wasting hours in traffic, or on crowded public transport, paying for overpriced lunches and not spending enough quality time with their families.
But for how long will employers remain flexible?
Very soon I suspect many will start to demand that people return - and quickly. David Solomon, the Goldman Sachs CEO, called remote work, “an aberration that we’re going to correct as quickly as possible.” And Amazon told its employees that it expected, “to return to an office-centric culture as our baseline.”. Office-centric – now that is an interesting way to define your culture.
Some employers are actively preaching the gospel of flexibility – being overtly receptive to concerns and appreciating that the free time given by the pandemic is something their employees are simply unwilling to relinquish
Not wanting to lose great people, some companies have spent the past year trying out different models, to figure out which one works best.
Whether that's allowing a hybrid of WFH and in-office work, or treating the office as a clubhouse where you gather for specific reasons, there are lots of innovative ways to approach this transition that keep both employee preferences and productivity in mind.
But most organizations still seem to be struggling with what will actually work best. There is however a rare opportunity to rethink formerly rigid conceptions of what an ‘office-centric’ culture should be.
There is no doubt that for some people, return-to-office anxiety is real.
It is important that businesses take steps to support their staff to feel safe when returning to work.
Avoiding a knee-jerk approach to reopening and strictly dictating when employees come back, and on what terms, might just be the safest option for everyone.
Lorri Lowe
Partner, UK
Tanya is also the Chair of the Association of Commercial Building Owners in Bulgaria, a member of the RICS, and Chair of the Ladies Forum - a not-for-profit organization of professional women in Bulgaria.
More than a year has passed since the beginning of the COVID 19 pandemic. What kind of approaches have been implemented by organizations around the globe to tackle various issues related to the workplace and the working process?
Many organizations have implemented a hybrid approach – working from home for 1-2 days as opposed to 3-4 days in an office setting. This model has provided the employers with the opportunity to exercise the precautionary distance anti-COVID measures while also ensuring a better work-life balance for the employees. The hybrid model is certainly not a novelty and was adopted by many companies in the technological sector years ago.
Some companies (predominantly based in the US) have decided to limit the availability of office spaces in order to prevent further spread of the virus. Personally, I believe that this approach is rather extreme and, in the long term, it could cause several serious organizational problems related to hiring, training, and retaining key employees, as well as inducing emotional fatigue.
With the notable exception of call centers, many large organizations that have shown growth both before and during the pandemic are progressively shifting towards more spacious offices. The reasons for the latter include, but are not limited to, the pandemic situation – and this tendency is in line with the general goal of modern companies to induce a positive office experience and comfort at the workplace.
The majority of tenants are companies that seek a new office building with quality ventilation and air filtration systems. For example, in our Park Lane Office Center building, we have installed specialized UV lamps inside the ventilation systems in order to ensure that the majority of virus and bacterial pathogens are neutralized (99%).
What are the most important takeaways for employers in connection with the 'new working process'?
I believe that the office space is being recognized as aspect of great importance for an organization, given that it signifies the physical representation of the company – its culture, its spirit and its mission. There was a time when our employees operated mainly from home, but I believe that it is particularly unhealthy for a company to exist in such a way in the long term. Working from home is certainly not ideal for everyone – people need face-to-face informal communication. Precisely these instances of spontaneous verbal interactions are often the source of brilliant ideas and unexpected synergies.
The claim that employees constitute the most valuable asset of an organization seems more viable than ever – human communication and creativity cannot be substituted with artificial intelligence, however advanced it may be.
What are the most noteworthy consequences (positive or negative) that companies have experienced during this period of working from home?
The evident increase in short-term productivity that many organizations boast about is a direct result of existing structures and teams. Before the pandemic, these teams had the chance to communicate in an informal office setting. This is the way a working relationship is best developed – in person. In the long run, it is expected that employee productivity will decrease as a result of the increased workforce “burnout”.
I believe that working from home also has a negative impact on decision-making agility – managers grow tired of the increasing number of the often unproductive calls and interruptions due to technical difficulties.
One positive result of working from home for some is the significantly reduced traveling time, but in our region commuting is significantly faster, as compared to some regions and city clusters, so the positive office experience of our employees outweighs their traveling inconvenience.
Recent studies have shown that junior employees are the most adversely affected by the work-from-home paradigm, due to their limited access to mentors and more experienced colleagues. As a result, their career growth process is hindered.
On another note, a different study has suggested that working mothers have been seriously impacted by the pandemic – one in four mothers is forced to make a compromise with their career in order to be able to look after their children at home. This seems like a major setback for the career advancement of women and would counteract many recent measures to enhance the gender balance in the workplace.
What particular office space usage tendencies can be observed lately? How are the needs and demands of the organizations evolving?
The tendencies that are evident in the office space construction sector have been steadily developing in companies that endeavour to attract quality workforce – highly paid, educated, and demanding. The organizations that are most interested in office spaces in Bulgaria mainly deal with IT, finance, and trade. They have been requesting increasingly cozy, modern, and spacious offices for their employees.
The preference disparity between building classes A and B is becoming even more evident. Many of the potential tenants in the Park Lane Office Center have expressed their desire to transfer to a high-end building situated at a more accessible location. These companies need to find a way to reattract their employees back to the office and they cannot tolerate any compromise when it comes to the quality of the facilities.
What will the workplace of the future look like, in your opinion?
The workplace of the future will be a hybrid one. Employees will have the opportunity to choose whether they would like to work from home, the office, or shared office spaces. Office spaces that resemble the cozy atmosphere of one’s home and provide many new experiences to their inhabitants will dramatically rise in popularity. The needs and demands of the employees will be the primary drivers behind the design and space management of these office spaces. The office will be divided between several autonomous sub-spaces – for work, collaboration, video calls, entertainment, dining, sport, etc. The corresponding effects will be an increase in productivity and employee satisfaction, complemented by relative ease in hiring and retaining employees.
Nevena Nikolova
Partner, Bulgaria
Steve Jobs said that it doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do. You should hire smart people so they can tell you what to do.
Employees are vital in creating your company's reputation and reputation creates value for your company.
Today, more than ever, a company’s reputation counts. We live in the digital age, where people (stakeholders, aspiring collaborators or just curious people) turn to social media and websites to get references and news about companies - and your employees can promote or destroy your corporate image.
The basis of a good reputation is employer branding - the ability of the company to become a recognised and valued brand relies on your reputation as being a great employer. In many ways your employees are more important than your customers, because if you take care of them, they will then take care of your company.
Employees are the only people who really appreciate the ethos and culture of your company. For this reason, their opinions can have an important impact on your business and future revenue.
Employees are crucial in the creation of the company values through:
Reasons to invest more in employer branding:
Guglielmo Sallustio
Partner, Milan
You have been a Partner in Friisberg since 1994. What was the career path you took to get to where you are today?
Initially I was approached by Kurt Kaariainen, a Partner from Finland, because we were selected as the best among eight consulting companies. I started as an assistant/ researcher cooperating with the highly experienced Partners from Denmark and Finland.
In 2000 we became a Partner firm, and I became the first female Partner – and the youngest!
It has been a long journey and even today, the Lithuanian market is not as mature as others. Eastern Europe has a complicated history and while even 25 years ago we were at the forefront of our industry, there is still more educating to do regarding clients understanding the services we can offer. We have undoubtedly gained a great reputation and the future looks good.
What do you enjoy most about being part of Friisberg?
Like any business that grows from a small business to a global firm over a few short decades, Friisberg has seen its share of organizational changes. We now have defined practice areas and they are undoubtedly one of the keys to our success. Working closely with other Friisberg offices on cross border assignments over the years has certainly helped us promote Lithuania as an up and coming economic business centre.
Everyone in Friisberg loves the challenge involved in finding the right candidate for a company, taking into account not only their knowledge and experience, but also the strategic visions of the client. Getting “the cultural fit” right is absolutely crucial and we genuinely understand why this is so important because in Friisberg we all share the same values and ethos. Our shared philosophy is to have consultants in our local markets, but with the ability to serve global clients as necessary. As a result, local office culture is vibrant but all consultants feel connected with their peers.
What advice would you give to someone considering a career in management consultancy and or executive search?
Before turning to executive search, I suggest gaining experience in different sectors and in different corporate positions. Accumulating experience, getting to know people and building good contacts is vital to creating a credible network. Knowing yourself is important too - you will spend a lot of time communicating with people from all walks of life and you need to feel confident in your own skin.
What qualities do you look for in a new consultant when joining Friisberg in Lithuania?
You must be resilient, so positivity is essential; never giving up is such a great attribute. I also admire openness and curiosity – you must always be interested in and enjoy meeting new people as well as having the intellectual rigour to learn about new businesses and sectors. We are a people business, so emotional competence is essential; being sensitive to candidates and clients makes a great consultant.
What has been the biggest change in Management Consultancy and Executive Search over the last 10 years?
The biggest change is the impact of the Internet and social media. I started working in executive search at the same time as the internet’s early development so I had to work much more with the sourcing of candidates through contacts. The evolution of the Internet, LinkedIn, and other search process tools have significantly speeded up the search process, especially for sourcing diverse candidates, and our clients expect results quickly, and without any compromise in quality. Of course human contact is essential from start to end and will always remain the most valuable part of any Search process.
Over the years, long-term relationships have become more and more stimulating. For example, being able to work with a client for over 15-years has been fantastic, and it is a privilege to share their ups and downs.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time when you are not working hard?
I think of myself as the child of nature. I grew up in a village, on a forest farm, and I love gardening, canoeing, cross-country skiing, hiking – basically, I love being close to nature.
Nijole Kelpsaite
Managing Partner, Lithuania.
The rules of the game have changed, and they could change again at any time. We have a duty not to superficially believe that a simple change in” how we work”, will be enough for our new reality. We must evolve, we must learn taking this rare opportunity for self-analysis and rethinking our corporate strategy, our values, and our purpose.
Companies must be adaptable and flexible, with the ability to withstand moments of uncertainty, and with the foresight to anticipate when unfavourable circumstances might arise.
The strategy should be simple to enable prompt analysis and agile decision-making.
An organizational structure should be flat and process-oriented, where the information flows easily and where there is access to pertinent information facilitating timely reactions to unexpected situations.
We must trigger the essential part of the organization: THE TEAM, redefining the organizational culture to encourage motivation and ensure we are all rowing in the same direction. A culture of innovation, together with interconnected and continuous learning means people can develop the skills this new model demands.
Solid HR basics are essential to adapt to the ever-increasing global transformation of business. Team selection and development become a key factor, as well as the use of Business Intelligence or Big Data tools so that HR professionals can make quick decisions based on data.
Perhaps reading this article was your first step, but we would be happy to support you on the rest of your journey.
María Figueroa, Associate
Madrid
Here’s a few insights from Delyan Grozdev, Veronika Mohacsi, Raik-Eric Theil and Sina Nowack about the invaluable role they and all our researchers play.
What does a day in the life of a Researcher look like?
It is varied! Being a researcher is undoubtedly a wide-ranging role involving lots of communication (with the team and our candidates), timely emails, telephone interviews and compilation of project briefs leading to systematic search, collection of business news and knowledge sharing (in person and with web platforms), thorough industry research and of course database maintenance.
What is your typical approach to finding candidates for a specific role?
At the outset we discuss with the consultant the best approach in terms of any possible sources or candidates on which to focus. If the role is one we do regularly in a given industry, then we get rolling pretty fast. In other cases though, the first thing to do may be to talk to a source well-positioned in the given field to get a better understanding. Vera says, “Naturally, we examine our earlier projects for similar roles, draw on our database and do Boolean search. I am old school in that I strongly believe in great candidates recommending great candidates.”
Raik-Eric agrees, “I work with Boolean strings in Linkedin and Xing and systematic cover letters. I talk to key people from the sector and ask them and contacts for recommendations.”
With an ever-increasing online presence, Executive Search is changing. How do you see your role developing in the future?
Delyan believes that the future is already here with automated tools like LinkedIn and Google Alerts being a good way to stay up to date with people and companies. “Technical skills for working with CRM/database tools and web search tricks are essential, but it is still a knowledge-based job so it remains crucial that we are deeply interested in how businesses and people work, to be able to target our searches well, using all the technology at hand. Data management is an increasingly time consuming issue both in terms of volume and knowing what’s what - don't talk to me about GDPR!”
The modern researcher, agrees Raik-Eric, must understand how to collect the right data, process it and translate it into appropriate action in order to continuously improve. “In the digital world, work is becoming more data-driven and scalable. We must therefore be able to move confidently in the relevant systems and on the relevant platforms.”
Sina reiterates however that is vital researchers do not lose professionalism in the way candidates are contacted, “It is becoming more and more important to address candidates in the right way and to network in a discreet way.”
What do you enjoy most about your role?
All agree that it is a privilege to interact with many differing personalities from a range of industries on a variety of issues. Acquiring knowledge is a vital part of the role – from business through to science - as well as understanding how businesses work and how the economy evolves.
In terms of international collaboration, Sina added, “Networking across national borders is very important for our clients and thus for me as a Researcher.”
How has the changes and new demands on industry affected the search process?
With so much information readily available and the pace of change in the world today, clients expect results faster. To stay competitive we need to balance speed with quality search methodology. In general, the demands on services are constantly increasing. In the course of customer centricity, our clients and candidates also expect our process to be targeted, transparent and fast.
Whenever the new normal arrives, and it will come in 2021, there will be a rush for talent. What action are you seeing companies taking at the moment?
Vera sums it up, “ In my experience, companies have recruitment needs now same as ever, I don’t see them holding back on a rush for talent later. Most of our clients are simply rethinking the way they work in the new normal.” Reflecting on the anomalous 2020, she added, “We’ve been conducting projects with virtual interviews and while it doesn’t offer the same experience as live interviews, it seems to be working pretty well. Considering how much time and energy can be saved (both from our side and candidates’ as well), virtual interviews may be with us for good. Our roles could involve zero face to face interaction with candidates - but I hope not!”
Veronika Mohacsi, Hungary
Raik-Eric Theil, Germany
Delyan Grozdev, Bulgaria
Sina Nowack, Germany
You have been responsible for international business development for years. What do you enjoy most about this role?
Diversity. Diversity, in terms of colleagues, cultures, projects and the international scene where we service our Clients. It delivers new challenges on a daily basis that I need to solve rather fast. Besides my work as a consultant on the Hungarian market, my international business development role makes it more complex providing me with a lot of new information, insights of international trends and involvement with how our Partners handle projects in various countries. It is just fun!
The concept of thinking globally is now more widespread. Why do you think Friisberg is so successful working globally and on cross border assignments?
Quite simply, Friisberg can be very responsive to the markets. Our flexible methodologies mean some of our offices actually exhibited massive growth during 2020, which is simply admirable. Even before the pandemic we positioned Friisberg not only as a trusted search firm, but also a management consultancy firm, delivering solutions for business leaders in management audit, board services, network science-based organisational development and business partner search.
What qualities do you think are required to facilitate effective international business development?
You must love it and you must be dedicated to it. Having inspiring people around you whether that is your colleagues, clients or candidates, helps and we must all listen to each other carefully. Openness is very important in such a role.
How do you use technology? Do you use business intelligence tools or systems and what steps you do take to analyse trends and identify new opportunities?
Throughout Friisberg we use various cloud based platforms for our business administration, but most importantly our Friisberg Network Advisory (FNA), which is a network science-based organisational development tool supported by AI, reveals the social network of the company and provides the opportunity to visualize and thus analyse and manage the relationship of business units and individuals. This is much loved by our clients too!
Where do you see Friisberg in 5 years’ time?
Friisberg is a growing organisation so my role is increasingly interesting. We are opening new offices in new cities and new countries and we plan to expand even more in the coming years. The future is very bright for Friisberg!
Zoltan Petho
Partner, Hungary
With such economic volatility and uncertainty currently, oversight by boards is more important now than ever.
A balanced view is critical to the success of a company, and maybe even its survival. However, boards may whether wilfully or unwittingly converge on collegial consensus and by doing so fail to address crucial issues. Independence from each other and thereby better collective decision-making are interconnected prizes that are hard fought but well worth winning.
In 2015, Siobhan Sweeney’s “The creation of the Contrarian Director and their role in achieving workable board independence and better risk oversight” caused something of a stir. The premise of that paper is as pertinent now as it was then, and in the aftermath of Coivd-19 perhaps even more so. Having a ‘Contrarian Director’ - a devil’s advocate - on a board to question the herd instinct, to investigate alternatives and recommend innovative approaches whilst acting independently and impartially will deliver more robust examinations of facts, options and proposals.
The longstanding and arguably inevitable consequence of capitalism is that the untried, untested, unknowns are avoided in favour of their more familiar counterparts. The composition of a board of directors will often follow the same trajectory, with reinforcement of success in the form of making another appointment not too dissimilar to the last. The case for independent thinking, and diversity of background (gender, ethnicity, education, experience) has not been made in sufficient boardrooms - all too many boards continue to miss opportunities in the appointment process leading to a reinforcement of an established culture.
Groupthink and confirmation bias in a board room are dangerous and difficult to root out. They can easily override the most rigorous of decision-making processes and detract from even the most respected expert opinion. Self-awareness is the key to reversing such a slide.
Chairs, and other NEDs should recognise when:
Consciously or subconsciously Chairs may prefer directors who will help them build a consensus. The concept of the contrarian runs counter to that – and deliberately so – so it will take a strong Chair (and CEO too) to actively seek out and secure someone to the board who can and will challenge them, routinely, but professionally of course.
Once the benefits of more varied thinking in the boardroom become apparent, then the same principles extended to senior management and throughout a company might yield yet more advantages for that company.
But… do please feel free to disagree with me!
Andrew Guy
Partner, UK
Most of us will have heard convincing presentations regarding visions, strategies, clearly defined projects, actions, and willingly, cheerfully, in chorus, agreed to work towards the temptingly described goals:
“Yes we can! Yes we will! Let´s do this!”
We have seen this in several organizations, heard about it from even more, and experienced it ourselves having been infected with the warm fuzzy feeling of the unanimous ‘Team Pledge’.
But, when reality kicks in and we realize this is actually going to necessitate considerable time and effort, the contagious team spirit that made us so determined and willing to sign up, bit by bit disappears…it simply fades away. Of course we all know what we should do, but all too often we hesitate, we do not prioritize - we make excuses. Our previous ‘total commitment’ is in the end, and at best, stored under ‘Happy Shared Moments’, or at worst never spoken about again.
It has long been a challenge for each and one of us to actively (not only in words) support and stand behind agreed visions, strategies, clearly defined projects, actions etc - to make it happen!
Our virtual existence comes with many benefits, indeed online meetings are often a great forum for sharing ideas and creating impressive strategic campaigns, but we have noticed that since the pandemic many people actually have less time to follow through– they are simply trapped behind the screen, too occupied in online meetings to even find the time to eat!
As we increasingly ‘talk the talk’ paradoxically many of us have less time to ‘walk the walk’ and our brilliant strategic plans become little more than ephemeral blue sky thinking…
While we all miss our daily in-person interactions, perhaps they are more important that we ever realized in ensuring our shared and agreed upon ideas actually become reality.
Share with us your tips of how you find the balance between the 'talk' and 'walk'.
We will be waiting behind our screens...
Michael Karlsson
Michael Rooslien
Partners, Sweden
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