Reflecting on 2021—And What's Ahead
"The pain of 2020 & 2021 created a great wave of connection that is making space for positive change." – Lori Hanau, Founder of Global Round Table Leadership
Looking Back on Big Changes
In many ways, 2021 felt like a response to last year. The whole world changed in 2020, and —almost two years later—we're still steadying ourselves from the aftershocks and adapting to the ever-changing impacts : labor shortages, inflation, supply chain issues, a global health crisis that won't seem to go away... it's enough to dishearten even the most optimistic among us.
But it's precisely in times like these that innovation explodes! As our own Tristan Toleno put it, "Crisis forces creativity in reluctant systems. The longer this goes on, the more creative people will have to be."
Innovation is driven by the need to solve problems and the human desire to participate. And too often we forget - we are FILLED with genius and we are SO creative! The pain of 2020 & 2021 created a great wave of connection that's making space for positive change. Our collective suffering is no longer hiding in the shadows of our unconscious because it's "not polite" to discuss in public spaces—like at work.
Innovation Management
Right now, there's a demand to focus on employee health & wellbeing. Just look at the "Great Resignation": in spite—or perhaps because of—these uncertain times, millions and millions of Americans have left their jobs, or plan to soon, and there are record-breaking numbers of positions available in every industry and every sector.
We're seeing a call to compassion, flexibility, teamwork, and cultivating caring environments in the workplace. Organizations that can nurture this type of resilient teaming culture will flourish. Companies that treat employees like the relationship is merely a financial transaction—you know, those who care more about their bottom line than their people—will lose market share and employees.
"Organizations that aren't actively embracing an employee-centric business model will soon find that their competitive advantage will erode." – Dr. Solange Charas
2022 is an opportunity to pivot toward more connectedness in our work cultures. While not everyone wants to be the boss, everyone needs to be valued—and that respect could show up in different ways.
Expand Possibility by Sharing Leadership
As we move out of the limbo of 2021 and into the promise of an evolutionary leap in 2022, we're asking ourselves, "What does it mean to 'team' well?" While there will always be exceptional individuals, the solo genius at the top of the hierarchy is an archetype of the past. We believe that the future is collaborative, and we're honored to steward our clients towards creating their own healthy, vibrant workplaces through our Shared Leadership Framework™.
We take so much joy in witnessing you all make the shifts towards sharing leadership! It completely resets expectations of what's possible. We can see (and clients can feel) more and more worthiness as they show up to this "inner” and group work with courage, honesty, and vulnerability.
As Lori Hanau, our founder, says:
"The sharing of power rather than the domination of power support the blossoming of group consciousness, as well as the health and healing of each person within the group."
Our clients report that the Shared Leadership Journey™ has led to more original and fresher brainstorming sessions, more creative problem-solving strategies, a more cohesive work culture, and better buy-in at every level of their organization. In addition, the research proves that happier employees lead to increased productivity and greater customer satisfaction time and time again.
As the proverb goes, we believe that if you want to go far, you should go together. Thank you for being on this learning journey with us so far. We look forward to going farther, together, in 2022 and beyond. Our very best to you along the way.