Anton Guinea
Entrepreneur, Speaker, bestselling author, and founder of The Guinea Group of Companies. For over 15 years, Anton has helped leaders move their teams to become psychologically safe, physically safe and overall better versions of themselves.
2023 is going to be tough for leaders. It will be fraught with challenges in the IT space, in the employee wellbeing space, and in the diversity and flexibility space. Leaders need to be ready to face these challenges and be equipped with the skills need to lead teams in 2023 and beyond.
And those skills look different to what they have looked like in the past.
1. The changing IT landscape
The list of challenges in the IT space is long and distinguished. From what software applications you should be using, to the implications of AI and VR for your business, to the risk of a cyber-attack on your IT systems.
Applications like Noom or Calm will help you with your health and relaxation as a leader. You could turn to AI, and Chat GPT, for advice on how to deal with certain situations. Chat GPT is taking the world by storm right now, and rightly so. Some pundits are saying it will challenge Google into the future. Or you could turn to VR and simulation to train your team members. But all of these take time, and take effort to learn them, right?
With new technology, it is generally a case of short-term pain for long term gain. Apps are designed to save us time, it just never feels like that, especially in the early days of adoption.
If you are running a consulting business, video marketing is king in 2023. Instagram feeds and Tik Tok videos are hot to reach the younger demographic. And Gary Vee predicted that Facebook reels will be the best way to connect with Gen X in 2023.
I feel like though, if you don’t do any of the above, the one thing that you should be focused on, is cyber security. With cyber-crime becoming nearly an accepted business model in the 2020s, it is important that you protect yours, and your companies, information, so that you don’t end up paying a criminal to get access to your data.
2. Employee well-being should be a major focus
In 2022, psychological safety became a legal requirement for businesses in Australia. Last year, the Australian Government released the “Work-related psychological health and safety National guidance material: A systematic approach to meeting your duties”. The introduction to that document states that:
“This Guide describes a systematic practical approach to managing work-related psychological health and safety. Most elements of this systematic approach are required under work health and safety (WHS) or workers’ compensation laws in all Australian jurisdictions. This Guide recognises poor psychological work health and safety can lead to both psychological and physical injuries.”
Yes, the psychological safety of our teams has always been important, but now it has gone from being a moral obligation to a legal obligation. Regulators will now be very interested in your compliance with this guidance material, particularly if your team members require time away from the workplace to deal with mental health issues – if they are deemed to be caused by their workplace.
And rightly so. Good leaders understand that the importance of psychological safety, and it is fair to say that good leaders will already be doing a lot of what is in that guide. Suffice it to say, though, if you are not adopting the requirements of that guide, you will be leaving your organisation and team members exposed.
3. Diversity and inclusion are now diversity and flexibility
Diversity and inclusion have been front and centre for leaders for years now, but the last two years have seen a global change in how team members want to work. The workplace has moved from being accepting, and inclusive, regardless of beliefs or sexual orientation, etc, to having to balance a hybrid workforce.
Yes, diversity in decision making has always been seen as the best way to foster innovation and creativity. In 2023, though, leaders now need to try and maintain that flexibility, and maintain either a four-day work week, or a workforce that only comes into the office for one or two days a week (max).
There is data and reports detailing the best work rosters, and the most flexible arrangements that promote productivity in work teams. At the end of the day though, leaders need to be all over not just that information, but also the administration and the rostering that flexibility requires. Because every team member is different, and what suits one team member may not necessarily suit another.
In summary, leaders everywhere are in for a tough 2023, where they will be challenged on all fronts.
2023 might be the time that you invest in a leadership coach for your leadership team.
Please reach out if you need to talk.
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