Leadership Resilience

Leadership Resilience isn’t easy to achieve; it calls for discipline. And that means being aware of the world around us. Clearly, the world today is being rewired by simultaneous geopolitical, economic, and technological shifts. This isn’t merely disruption; it is an upheaval of an equilibrium that has kept the world balanced for years. The number of people who get caught off guard is not surprising. It is easier to believe that the world will somehow look after itself and that businesses and economies will continue without any problems.  However, the last few years have taught us that the world is not the same and is changing even faster.

I keep thinking about the challenges ahead with trade, AI, robotics, and yes, the decoupling from alliances that are now risks to countries and industries. So, what changes do they bring? A lot and many that are not yet defined. And that is just the problem. I am a former CEO, and I’ve studied and practiced governance and risk management. And while one may say there is nothing new here because things always happen, they are right. But they are very wrong to think this is just the way it is, and that we will deal with it when it comes. Nonsense, they are not thinking about the future of an organization or careers; instead, they are worried about the work this involves. And believe me, business and career survival require a great deal of work.

But in the mid-2000’s, I developed a very simple process to build leadership and organizational resilience. In fact, it is too simple, and it is ignored because most don’t like thinking about tomorrow. It is scary, unnerving, creates anxiety, and a lot of stress. There are three principles, and I will share the Leadership Resilience process now.

Leadership that is not resilient has many visible shortfalls. Being unprepared, not thinking about the consequences of decision-making, lacks experience and exposure to the real world. In fact, given how the world is evolving today, all decision makers need to understand these three principles. You can spot weak leadership because they have not thought through the consequences of their choices. There are all kinds of leaders that fall into this trap: those who wear their emotions on their sleeves, others who follow the herd, and those who have ill-planned agendas and destroy trust in themselves and within organizations and communities that they serve.

How did I learn these rules? Through a world of heavy responsibilities in leading organizations and people, and always on the lookout for where risks and opportunities exist. I chose not to wear rose-colored glasses and to lead with a keen focus on what’s ahead of me now and potentially in the future. Incidentally, the byproduct of this kind of leadership behaviour is that you foster vision and strategic thinking, making you indispensable. These rules apply in all kinds of roles and organizations.

My name is George Minakakis, and I have led companies for thirty years. My experience has been with Fortune 500 companies. My business journey has been within Canada, the USA, China, the EU, the South Pacific, and Australia. My roles and assignments as an executive broadened my education, knowledge, and experiences from the corner office to the boardrooms. My experiences are real-world; I’ve studied AI, Robotics, Automation, and Corporate Governance. I invite you to read my new book, Predictive Leadership – How Humans and AI will Transform Organizations, Innovation and Competition