As we head into 2022, it’s time to reflect upon just how hard the pandemic rocked the business world – to the point where leaders must adapt if they, their teams and their businesses, are to survive and thrive.

Here are the top three leadership trends that will dominate the business landscape in 2022 and beyond.

1.  Recalibrating Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

While diversity and inclusion have been a part of the public discourse for the past few years, social movements like Black Lives Matter have led to organisations setting a high priority to DE&I efforts. However, DEI cannot work as mere compliance-based initiative that is addressed with mandatory training sessions. In 2022, DEI must be woven into culture, in the daily interactions of leaders and employees.

Turns out, according to a recent research by Korn Ferry,

• 64% of organisations identify building diverse and inclusive teams as a key challenge.
  • Yet only 32% are purposely creating diverse and inclusive teams to drive performance.
  • And only 42% are developing their leaders to be inclusive.

Here’s what you can do: Revamp your hiring practices to look beyond homogenous networks and tap into diverse candidate pools. A Diversity & Inclusion Report reveals three leadership practices that companies can leverage to advance a diverse and inclusive culture. These practices include “giving leaders high-quality, personalized development plans, ensuring performance management discussions include a heavy focus on development planning, and building a core leadership program for all leaders in the organisation, including high-potential leaders.”

2.  Upskilling Your Workforce

Fret not, but a study published in 2013 by researchers at Oxford University estimates that just under 50 percent of the U.S.’s total jobs are at a high risk of being taken by computers within the next two decades. With such uncertainty around future of work, it makes sense why leaders need to understand the importance of investing in employee development and upskilling their workforce.

LinkedIn’s 2021 workplace learning report shows that 74% of employees feel a lack of development opportunities is stopping them from reaching their full potential, 87% of millennials believe that workplace learning and development is important, and 76% think companies are more attractive if they offer additional skills training.

Employees wanting training opportunities and career growth isn’t anything new. However, as we witness the Great Resignation and watch people leave their jobs in unprecedented numbers, the need to take retention incentives arise more than ever.

As a leader, you can develop upskilling programmes such as job rotation and job enlargement. Map out a learning and development programme focused on building job-specific skills, learning new technologies, acquiring leadership techniques and strengthening soft skills such as empathy and problem-solving. Coaching and mentoring activities also prove to be very effective.

3.  Prioritising Employee Wellbeing

Employee wellbeing was valued even before COVID-19, but this trend further accelerated after the pandemic, with organisations increasingly putting employee wellbeing center stage.

Back-to-back Zoom sessions, blurred boundaries between work and home, a plethora of personal challenges, a lack of connectedness to team mates altogether make a perfect recipe for burnout. In 2022, leaders are committing to holistic workplace well-being, focusing on all facets – physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health of employees.

As a leader, you must create psychological safety where employees feel safe to talk about their well-being. Introduce mental health initiatives and fitness-related perks, meet employees’ expectations for flexible working, but most importantly, make sure they have adequate energy needed to survive and thrive when times get tough.

Learn how you can take your leadership teams through a growth model which will help them mature on a personal and professional level by following me on LinkedIn and subscribing to the Keijzer Community.

Paul Keijzer is the CEO and Founder of Engage Consulting and the co-Founder of The Talent Games, which aims to transform HR by digitising talent processes and creating more engaging and productive workplaces through gamification and mobile technology. As a global HR and Leadership Management expert, Paul knows how to combine business insights with people insights to transform organisations and put them on the path to growth.