What employees want from their leaders

The expectations placed on leaders have changed

Taking a human-centred approach to leadership has never been more important. Emotional intelligence, self-awareness and compassion are now all considered key ingredients of a good leader. This is because leading in today’s world of work isn’t just about generating results, it’s about putting people first and establishing a culture that supports the success and wellbeing of every individual within the business.

Our latest survey, however, found that nearly half (43%) of HR professionals believe their leaders fail to role model the behaviours that align with the culture they want to create – thus failing to set a clear example for their people to follow. In short, they don’t walk the talk!

Nearly half of leaders aren't role-modelling the behaviours that align with the business culture

This disparity between reality and expectation often arises when leaders are only rewarded for achieving financial results, while the value of leadership traits and behaviours is left unrecognised. The exact criteria for how leaders should lead will always be entirely unique to each organisation, and should align with its purpose and culture; but what remains true in every case is that employees want leadership with humanity at its core.

Leaders need to connect with their people

Now, with businesses continuing to contend with change at an unprecedented rate, maintaining a focus on financials is understandable. But the reality of the situation is that an organisation cannot achieve its targets without the ongoing input and efforts of its workforce, and the most effective way of creating a culture where employees feel engaged and motivated to put in this effort is to attract, develop and retain leaders capable of connecting with them on a human level.

Unfortunately, our data shows that around 1 in 3 HR professionals believe their leaders’ biggest skill gaps lie in their interpersonal capabilities and behaviours – such as communication and emotional intelligence; and as a result, 32% lack confidence in their leaders’ ability to lead their organisation effectively over the next 2-3 years.

Clearly, leaders have quite a lot of ground to make up.