Best Workplaces, Developing Leaders, Leadership & Management
Accenture’s Ellyn Shook and UKG’s Pat Wadors offer a new blueprint for leadership.
There is no question: This is a moment for extraordinary and courageous leadership.
Business leaders are also being asked to do more than ever before.
“A lot has changed,” says Ellyn Shook, chief leadership and human resources officer, at Accenture. Shook joined Pat Wadors, chief people officer at UKG, for a panel discussion hosted by Fortune CEO Alan Murray on Oct. 16. The topic of discussion: How great workplaces are developing leaders to build trust and connection with an increasingly fractured workforce.
“What got us here won’t get us to the future in a healthy way,” Wadors says.
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Defining the new skill set
What are the new tenets of leadership? Shook says Accenture looks at three key traits:
1. Compassion. This starts with empathy, Shook says, but it has to go deeper than just words: “Not just empathy, but doing something about it.”
2. Learning. This trait is crucial in a world where new technology rapidly disrupts business models and industry strategies. “Leaders need to be learners to be successful,” Shook says.
3. Humility. Are you able to consider others’ point of view? Admit when you’ve made a mistake? Recognize that the voices of your employees, your clients, or people in your community must be a driving force behind decision-making for you to be successful, Shook says.
Accenture asks a simple question to assess the performance of leaders: “Are employees net better off working at Accenture?”
Accenture expects to have a positive impact on employees’ health and well-being, as well as ensuring employees feel connected and have a sense of belonging. Employees should also wake up every day feeling they have purpose in their work and have the opportunity to build market-relevant skills.
Wadors has her own term for the work required of leaders in great workplaces: “porpoising down.” The name conjures an image of a leader, like a porpoise, diving deep to learn about the problems that are preventing employees from doing their best work.
“Learn enough to know how to fix things,” Wadors says. “That is your job: to create a healthy workplace for all.”
Listening never stops
Both Wadors and Shook stressed the importance of listening, one of the nine high-trust leadership behaviors, in responding to the complex needs of employees in the workforce today.
Shook points to the Edelman Trust Barometer, which showed that an employer is the most trusted institution for many people. With that level of trust comes a profound responsibility, Shook says, which means employers should consider how they can create space for employees to come together, learn, and share.
“Acknowledge what is happening,” says Wadors. “If [employees] don’t feel seen and heard, it’s hard to move on in a healthy way.”
Both leaders were clear about the need for always-on, robust listening programs.
“I don’t think you turn listening off,” Wadors says. She recommends finding the right cadence for checking in, where managers have a one-on-one conversation and ask simple questions like, “How are you?” and “How can I support you?”
At Accenture, a sophisticated listening framework is all about ensuring that trust is preserved between employees and the organization.
“We need to make sure there is a tight connection between what we say and what we do every day of the year,” Shook says.
The impact of remote work
Business leaders have also struggled to adapt to new work norms around remote work and increased flexibility. Without regular touchpoints with direct reports in and around the office, some leaders worry about performance. and hear from top executives at the Best Workplaces℧.
