Managers must think more networked

What skills and characteristics do managers increasingly need in the digital age? The Institute for Leadership Culture in the Digital Age (IFIDZ), Frankfurt am Main, know. It therefore launched an online survey of managers on this topic called the Leadership Trend Barometer. The executives, who took part anonymously, were able to select a maximum of three answers from a total of 19 options. 127 executives took part in the online survey.

The survey revealed that most of the participants consider the ability to think in a networked manner to be a core competence of leadership in the digital age. However, just as many consider the characteristic "openness to new, unfamiliar ideas and possible solutions" to be important (69 percent in each case). According to Barbara Liebermeister, head of IFIDZ, this corresponds with the fact that 65 percent of the respondents consider a high willingness to learn and change to be a key competence of a leader in the digital age. In fourth place comes the ability to convey meaning and demonstrate meaningful connections. (64 percent). This is again closely related to the fact that 58 percent of respondents are convinced that managers will be more in demand as leaders in the future. In other words, they must be "role models, impetus providers and motivators for other people". Only 13 percent of respondents, on the other hand, consider a "high level of assertiveness" to be an important characteristic of managers in the digital age - presumably, according to Liebermeister, because this characteristic is more in demand in a working environment characterized by a strong hierarchy, and less in a working environment characterized by cooperation as well as cross-departmental and cross-hierarchical collaboration.

IFIDZ conducts an anonymous online survey of executives three times a year under the label Leadership Trend Barometer. The next online survey will start at the beginning of October.