Insights

Deeply saddened and with a heavy heart, we share the sudden passing of our beloved colleague and friend, Nol van Aalst.

Nol unexpectedly passed away on the night of March 16, 2024, at the young age of 57.

Nol was more than just a colleague; as a sales manager, he was a driving force within Relevance and Schouten & Nelissen. With his caring personality, empathy, and generosity, he embodied our DNA through everything he did. His ability to make a genuine connection with everyone made him a unique and irreplaceable link within Relevance and Schouten & Nelissen as a whole.

The sudden death of Nol has deeply affected us and left an indescribable emptiness in all of us. In this period of mourning, our thoughts go out to his daughter, Nienke, his girlfriend Nicole, his parents, family, and friends, and, of course, to his team and all colleagues at Relevance and Schouten & Nelissen.

In memory of Nol, we opened an online condolence register. Here, everyone can share memories and pay tribute to Nol's vibrant life and the moments we were able to share with him.

We wish everyone strength and courage in these difficult times.

With the rise of AI tools enhancing speed and efficiency in the workplace, leaders are facing challenges in ensuring every team member is engaged, finds fulfillment in their roles, and actively contributes to the company's mission.

Particularly in the context of reskilling and upskilling within organizations, a multifaceted approach is essential. This approach encompasses a broad spectrum of skills and strategies aimed at fostering personal and organizational growth, agility, and the capacity to navigate and lead through change.

Looking at what keeps our customers around the world ahead of their game, we notice a list of critical leadership skills that keep leaders at the helm whille navigating the AI revolution. 

In the context of reskilling and upskilling, the role of leadership transcends traditional management, shifting towards a coaching-oriented approach that prepares teams for the fluid demands of the modern workplace. This evolution calls for leaders to not only guide but also empower their teams, fostering an environment where resilience, adaptability, and innovation are at the forefront.

As organizations navigate through the complexities of developing new skills, leaders are tasked with managing diverse team dynamics, recognizing and nurturing positive behaviors while mitigating any negative or toxic tendencies. This balancing act is crucial in maintaining team cohesion and productivity during periods of learning and growth.

Moreover, effective leadership in times of uncertainty means embodying the change they wish to see, demonstrating behaviors and attitudes that align with the new skills and mindsets being adopted. By leading from the front when necessary and stepping back to encourage and support, leaders can instill confidence and foster an inclusive culture where every team member feels valued and motivated to contribute to the organization's evolution.

• Manage team dynamics: Teams undergoing reskilling and upskilling encounter significant challenges. Leaders play a crucial role in navigating various behaviors within their teams, some of which contribute positively to goals while others may exhibit toxic tendencies if not addressed effectively.
• Leadership Effectiveness: Leading through uncertainty requires us to lead by example and positively reinforce when new behavior is starting to show. Effective leaders recognize when they are requiered to lead in front on step to the back and lead through encouragement. 
• Coaching Skills: Coaching as a skill for leaders have never been as relevant as today, by applying even the most essential coaching skills, leaders create resilient, adaptable teams that are well-prepared to meet the challenges of an ever-changing work environment, driving innovation through ownership.

2. Personal Development and Effectiveness

Leaders are constantly on a journey of personal growth to enhance their leadership effectiveness. Time management, personal effectiveness, and critical thinking are foundational to this. Time management involves breaking with ineffective habits and prioritizing actions that align with one’s values and ambitions, ultimately leading to high performance. Personal effectiveness is about leveraging one’s talents towards achieving personal ambitions and enhancing communication styles for improved performance. Critical thinking clarifies decision-making processes, focusing on solving the challenge at hand by putting relevant factors into perspective.

• Personal Effectiveness: Set personal goals aligned with organizational objectives. A leader might set a quarterly goal to enhance their team's productivity by 20% through improved workflow processes.
• Critical Thinking: Evaluate information from multiple sources before making decisions. When faced with a complex problem, a leader analyzes data, seeks expert opinions, and considers past experiences to make informed choices.
• Time Management: Prioritize tasks based on urgency and importance. For example, a leader starts their day by identifying top priorities and allocates specific time blocks for these tasks to ensure they are completed without delay

3. Enhance Communication and Collaboration

Effective leaders show strong signs of self-awareness, empowering their teams to actively contribute to discussions and navigate diverse situations with assurance. In today's context, mastering collaboration skills is paramount as teamwork takes center stage.

Understanding the intricacies of team dynamics and cultivating trust within teams are vital components of effective leadership. Effective leaders show that they constantly drive a shared vision, recognize and leverage the unique strengths and contributions of individual team members to actively encourage innovation and collaboration.

• Effective Communication: Practice active listening during meetings. This involves summarizing what others have said to ensure understanding, thereby fostering a culture of respect and openness.
• Collaboration Skills: Encourage team brainstorming sessions to solve problems. A leader might organize regular cross-departmental meetings to facilitate creative solutions by leveraging diverse perspectives.
• Building Trust: Share successes and failures transparently with the team. By openly discussing challenges and lessons learned from failures, a leader builds trust and encourages a culture of honesty and continuous improvement

4. Encourage Innovation

The business end on Diversity and inclusion means fostering an inclusive environment by addressing topics like psychological safety and unconscious bias drives engagement and creativity.  Creativity and innovation stand as cornerstones of success. Leaders must not only recognize the importance of fostering a culture that values and prioritizes innovation but also champion adaptability as a key trait within their organizations. Encouraging creativity means providing a space where out-of-the-box thinking is not only welcomed but celebrated. Leaders can inspire their teams to think innovatively by setting aside time for brainstorming sessions, encouraging experimentation, and rewarding bold ideas. 

Being adaptable means being open to trying new approaches, pivoting strategies when necessary, and learning from both successes and failures. By instilling a culture of adaptability within their teams, leaders position their organizations for long-term success.

• Promoting Diversity: Implement mentorship programs pairing senior leaders with employees from diverse backgrounds. This behavior demonstrates a commitment to developing diverse talent and promoting inclusivity.
• Fostering Innovation: Organize 'innovation days' where employees can work on projects outside of their regular responsibilities. This initiative encourages creativity and could lead to new product ideas or process improvements.
• Psychological Safety: Create a safe space for sharing ideas and concerns. Leaders might hold regular open forums where team members can voice thoughts without fear of judgment or repercussion.

5. Recognize and respond to new information

Leaders that own the change their company goes through lead from vision and communicate the vision within their team. They involve people through change with empathy, understanding, and strategic foresight.

Balance applying change models to real-life scenarios but also need to consider the human aspect of change, ensuring their teams are supported, engaged, and motivated throughout the transition.

• Adaptability: Adjusting strategies in response to external changes requires a leader to be not just adaptable but also communicative and supportive.
• Anticipating Challenges: Proactively identifying potential obstacles to change and developing contingency plans should involve engaging with the team to leverage their insights and prepare them for possible scenarios.
• Creative Problem Solving: Encouraging out-of-the-box thinking to navigate challenges is essential, but doing so through a collaborative leadership style can enhance the process.

Where do you start?

Leadership in the context of reskilling and upskilling is multifaceted, requiring a blend of personal effective communication, inclusion, innovation, change management, all with the future in mind. By cultivating these essential skills, leaders can ensure that their organizations remain agile, innovative, and well-equipped to navigate the challenges and opportunities of the modern business landscape.

It's clear that the emphasis on the importance of a holistic approach to leadership development is essential, one that integrates personal growth with organizational objectives, ensuring that both leaders and their teams are prepared to face the future with confidence and competence.

Relevance Learning is a proud partner of the world's front-running organizations. Contact us to schedule a free conversation to find ways to start enhancing your leadership of tomorrow. 

"Relevance has been awarded the Best in Practice Award 2023 in the Leadership/Management Development category by the Association for Talent Development (ATD) for its People Management Program Stores (PMPS)."

The BEST Awards recognize organizations that achieve success through talent development initiatives for their employees. In collaboration with a well-known retail brand, Relevance has developed an international leadership program that has earned us this prestigious award.  

Association for Talent Development (ATD)

The Association for Talent Development is a global non-profit organization dedicated to talent development and workplace learning. Founded in 1943, the organization has played a leading role in the world of learning & development ever since.

ATD focuses on supporting and developing HR professionals, trainers, coaches, and others involved in talent development. They provide a wide range of information, tools, research, books, and publications to help professionals enhance employee performance and development in various organizations and industries. By sharing knowledge, research, and best practices, ATD aims to assist employees in improving their expertise and skills while helping organizations create positive and productive work environments.

The Best in Practise Award

The ATD Best in Practice Award is an annual recognition presented to organizations that excel in talent development and workplace learning. It is a prestigious award that acknowledges an organization's commitment and effectiveness in this field.

To qualify for the award, an organization is assessed based on various criteria, including leadership support, talent development, and innovation. Best in Practice Award winners are acknowledged as pioneers in talent development and learning. Additionally, they have the opportunity to share their best practices with a broad audience within ATD, offering valuable opportunities for knowledge-sharing with other organizations.

For more information about ATD, please visit their website.

Every organization has a mission to follow, a goal to fulfill. These differ across industries, branches and trades. However, all organizations also share a mission: maintaining or improving the wellbeing of their employees. Today’s fast-changing world stresses the importance of the wellbeing of our people.

During the pandemic, employees discovered a new set of challenges, because a large part of the previous support system disappeared. Where they would normally have been surrounded by colleagues and managers to offer help, they were now working from home. Grace Liu, HR Director Global Learning & Development at Delaval, noticed this shift and initiated an employee wellbeing program to offer support. She is passionate about encouraging people to learn and offering useful tools to maintain and ideally improve their happiness. Delaval partnered with Relevance to create 90-minute Boostcamp sessions. The program supports employees’ wellbeing through connection and self-reflection. After two years of successful implementation, Grace looks back on the merits of the program with Camiel Gielkens, Relevance’s CEO.

Anticipating challenges emerging through change

“What challenges does Delaval face?”, wonders Camiel. Grace identifies two different aspects of key challenges at Delaval, and essentially for every worldwide organization. Wellbeing was always high on their agenda, but the way of supporting employees changed tremendously the past few years. Firstly, the learning method has shifted from collective learning in a classroom to individual and digital learning. Besides challenges, this development brings opportunities. Grace: “The workforce is invited to step into new ways of learning. Instead of sitting in the traditional classroom, learning is now digital and self-paced.” Contrary to what some might expect, Grace thinks this makes learning more social. Especially in a multinational organization as Delaval, virtual learning enables colleagues from all over the world to get to know each other and share their experiences. >

Improving employee happiness with Boostcamp Sessions

The challenge

• How to support employee wellbeing during the pandemic
• Shifting from classroom to individual digital learning
• New relevant topics: hybrid working, leading remotely, diversity and inclusion online, self-awareness, flexibility
• Learning engagement

The learning solution

• 90 minute boostcamp sessions on e.g. managing work-life balance, strengthening resilience and a positive mindset
• The goal was to create awareness and provide support systems
• Connecting people (also internationally) in an accessible way

Learning mindset as a result

• 700 participants
• Employees felt encouraged, inspired and energized
• Find support and recognition with international colleagues
• Boosted curiosity and learning mindset as a new starting point for future leadership programs

< Subsequently, this virtual and multicultural learning method requires more self-reflection. Grace explains the importance of reflecting after an online learning interaction with others. “We think about questions as: ‘How do I digest what I have received from others? How do I combine this with my own core qualities and leadership style?’”. Because of the changed learning method, individual learners need to synchronize what they have learned.

Secondly, next to learning methods, learning skills are shifting too. Delaval wants to address new and different topics, such as hybrid working. Grace emphasizes the prerequisite of diversity and inclusivity, especially online: “How do I, as a manager, stay connected and available for employees in a hybrid work environment?”. Camiel: “That requires a lot of different ways of learning, with a lot more tools and variation.” For that reason, businesses are reimagining the business model and organization structure. “This is crucial, since we need to anticipate on and prepare ourselves for changes and disruptions, instead of being surprised by them,” Grace says. “In doing so, self-awareness is key. We ask ourselves what kind of awareness we have. What kind of leader am I? How can I engage my team into this digital information?”

Supporting and inspiring employees

Self-reflection poses the all too familiar question: are we good enough? Do we still have the energy to deliver and reach our goals, and perhaps reach beyond? Delaval did the same. The organization wanted to support the wellbeing of their employees, especially during the challenges that emerged during the pandemic. They organized sessions with nine topics, where participants could pick and choose which to follow, including: ‘manage your work-life balance’, ‘strengthen your resilience in changing times’ and ‘develop a positive mindset’.

"We wanted to show people we are here to help and they are not alone."

Grace: “The goal was to help employees become aware of their own wellbeing and providing tools and different support systems.” Camiel elaborates: “We saw it was not easy for people to deal with the pandemic. There were high levels of stress and uncertainty. We wanted to create a program to show employees we are here to help. To show them they are not alone. Through the 90-minute Boostcamp sessions, we aimed to connect people and decrease stress in a very accessible way.”

This was the reason, Delaval and Relevance hosted sessions of 90 minutes. Grace explains this gives participants enough time to feel comfortable to open up, feel the connection and get to know others who are facing similar challenges and learn something, without taking up too much of their time and making it feel like an obligation. Another way of making the sessions feel more causal was the self-registration process. Everybody was welcome to join, without manager approval or additional costs. This made participating easier.

Over the past two years, nearly 700 people took part in 90-minute Boostcamp Sessions. Employees say they feel encouraged, inspired and energized after participating. They enjoy connecting with people from all over the world. During the Boostcamp Sessions, they find comfort in knowing they are not alone, while simultaneously becoming aware of differences and overlaps throughout various countries and cultures. This requires a safe, inclusive environment. With these sessions, Delaval aims to support inclusivity and diversity throughout their organization. Camiel: “The program helps to create a learning and growth mindset. How to deal with emotions, difficult situations and new ways of working. With the 90-minute Boostcamp Sessions, we create a new awareness. People start to think about these topics and become more curious. Eventually, they understand the need and use of these programs better. In that sense these programs cultivate that learning mindset. As an organization, you build a platform for future leadership programs and learning interventions.”

What’s next?

The 90-minute Boostcamp Sessions have definitely contributed to the improved employee wellbeing and satisfaction, Grace tells us. Would she do anything differently? “No”, she says jokingly. “The program was perfect! But I would love to make learning in Delaval more personal in future. For our leadership program we offered nine different topics. I wish we could make learning even more bite-sized and personalized. To offer more creativity and flexibility.” Camiel agrees: “Making learning more personal and also in the moment of need!”

The name of their talent development program says it all: U.Gro ensures personal growth. Manon van Beek, Global Program Manager for U.Gro at geodata specialist Fugro, talks about the origins of this program for young professionals and future managers. What does the talent program involve and how was it developed? What challenges are they facing and – importantly – what have been the results so far?

 Focus on young talent

“With thousands of employees around the world, Fugro is a complex organization,” Manon says. “A few years ago, our leaders felt the distance between them and the group of starters was becoming too great. They wanted a better understanding of them, their skills and their potential. To get to know the group of young employees better and be able to help them develop further, management decided to set up a young professionals program. This talent program would also facilitate collaboration across borders, increase transparency and help employees seize opportunities for growth.”

 Welcome Relevance

“The offering from Relevance appealed to me immediately. First, it met our requirements; the content was timely and inspiring. We also wanted certain things like local trainers in parts of the world, and that could be arranged. Second, the supporting online platform was logical, attractive and flexible. There was a lot of room for our own ideas, and we designed the talent development program together. The collaboration went smoothly from the start; we clicked instantly. Everything was ideal.”

 Online launch

“Initially, we got started in Europe, completely online. We informed management, HR joined in, and we organized the first kick-off meetings. A new group started every month with a maximum of 14 participants and all nationalities mixed together. The kick-off with the Relevance trainer was the green light to start a learning journey that will last a couple of years. In the program, people learn from videos and articles on the platform, attend training sessions and workshops about motivation, communication and collaboration, participate in interactive deep dive learning blocks, and attend peer coaching sessions, among other things.”

“From e-learnings and workshops to deep dives and peer coaching. It has everything.”

 Deep dives

“For example, one of the deep dives was designed around our core competency of client awareness. Someone from Fugro talks about what they are up against on project X and outlines the case. The participants then consider how they would approach it. What are the customer’s requirements? Instead of just coming up with the best solution, they first investigate what the customer wants. Sometimes that’s something completely different. This kind of deep dive helps people become more conscious of the content, and they learn to present and reflect. All the practical cases are close to reality, so they sink in better than yet another e-learning.”

 Two groups and two phases

Fugro is using the talent development program for all college graduates with up to two years of experience. “Since 2020, a new group of starters has started every month. They take about 2.5 years to complete their U.Gro. In phase 1, ‘Engage 2 discover,’ they get to know Fugro and themselves better. In phase 2, ‘Drive 2 succeed,’ they learn basic leadership skills and take part in the deep dives into critical and strategic thinking. We then invest a little extra in a small group, about 5% of the participants. Those high potential talents are put on the International Leadership Track (ILT), a customized traineeship consisting of several assignments and an in-between phase called ‘Challenge 2 grow.’”

 Challenges

“We’ve definitely found areas for improvement in the past year,” Manon continues. “Someone who’s working on a ship or drilling a well in the middle of the desert can’t attend a two-day workshop. The poor coverage alone... So recently we started a pilot in which people can register themselves for the deep dive learning blocks. This makes learning more flexible. It also means we’ve abandoned the principle of learning with and from each other in fixed groups, but people can now set their own pace. After all, real life is also full of changes.”

“I have a close relationship with the designer of the program. Do we want to add or remove a topic? Make something shorter or longer? It happens. That flexibility is really ideal for us.”

Feedback

Most participants have been very enthusiastic about the talent development program. “Some were a little skeptical beforehand. Like, ‘Do I really have to learn to communicate differently?’ But once they get started, they’re pleasantly surprised about the power skills the training gives them. To me, that’s part of the reason I’m in this business. It really does energize you to see people grow! A person may be very smart, but if they can’t get something across or don’t get anyone on board, they won’t achieve much. Isn’t it great that young professionals feel confident enough to take charge in a relatively short time?”

Culture wave

So in practice, Manon sees that people are being energized by the talent program. “And by working together with their colleagues elsewhere in the world, they also learn more about what Fugro does than they would if they had to get the information from the website. This program expands everyone’s bubble, which creates opportunities and enlarges worlds. It’s still a bit early to draw conclusions, but I’m convinced that talent development will reduce absenteeism and turnover and create happier employees! What’s more, U.Gro is spreading like wildfire and triggering a genuine culture change. Since starters get a mentor, we have to teach colleagues to be mentors. And because we let young professionals discuss things with their managers, managers are also held accountable for their behavior. We’re creating a more open culture with more room for feedback, exactly what we’d hoped for from the beginning.”

When Schouten & Nelissen and Relevance CEO Camiel Gielkens met with AutoGravity CEO Alexandre Mallmann, their discussion of change management quickly turned into a catch-up session between two old friends. Here’s what the two CEOs had to say about the role people play in the success or failure of a new strategy.

This article was published in Schouten & Nelissen magazine in 2019

Alex, it’s been a while since we worked together in China. And now you’ve moved to California to head AutoGravity. Let’s talk about change, which is something you have certainly never shied away from, have you?

“No, not exactly! Looking back on my career, in every company where I have served as CEO, I initiated a change process. But always for different reasons. Sometimes I needed to turn around a downward trajectory. Other times, like in China, I needed to get the company ready for growth.

Now at AutoGravity, it’s a different game altogether. When I came here, it felt like a start-up. AutoGravity already had market-leading technology. It was my challenge to formulate a clear business model and strategy.”

I know you have a lot of experience in financial business models and you are a real innovator. But to go into a company and challenge the entire business model, that’s a big change. What a tough job.

“Talking about change! I can tell you, it has been difficult at times. We began with 160 people in the company, and now we have fewer than 60. The company needed to be downsized in order to stay in business. I saw we were not going in the right direction. I said, ‘Guys, this is where this company is going; I need to know who is in, and who is out. If you are not in, we respect that, but we have to move forward.’”

Bold moves! I know you always have very high standards. That can be very demanding, but I also admire you for your care for people. How do you get the best out of your people in a situation like that?

“If you are driving major change at any organization, you are probably stepping into a situation that needs fixing. Until you acknowledge the challenges employees have experienced in the past, they are not going to believe in any proposed changes for the future. So, it’s very important to be honest about things that have gone wrong. Provide a diagnosis and a vision for what success looks like going forward. Once you have done those things, ask for people’s commitment to right the ship. A company’s most important resource is its people. If they don’t believe, the company has no chance.”

I sense there is a great lesson to learn here. You must have a clear view of what the key steps are in such a process. How do you lead a change process?

“Overall, I see 5 steps to any change process. These have applied in every change project I have been a part of. I start by doing an assessment to understand what phase a company is in. I talk to the executive team and other stakeholders. Next, I hold ‘skip-level meetings’ in which I talk with the team one level below my direct reports. Then I have what I call ‘heartbeat meetings’ in which I invite employees, regardless of their level in the organization, to meet with me for informal conversations. In these meetings, we can ask each other any question. This is so valuable.”

"Leaders today should be kind and respectful."

Alexandre Mallmann

Alexandre Mallmann’s 5-step change process

1. Organization assessment
2. Direction and vision
3. Strategy and execution
4. Values and behaviors
5. Communication

This is a great concept, ‘heartbeat meetings’. I want to know more. How do you create a readiness for change in people?

“Well, the fact that you invite people to talk is a great motivator. People appreciate the time you take for them. I show people that I depend on their views. I don’t know all the details. They do! It is so important to really listen to the people in your organization and demonstrate how their input led to tangible outcomes for the company. Show your appreciation. That is how people become more open to change.”

What is the second step after organization assessment?

“Direction. What I have seen at many places is a lack of clear direction for the company. Where are we going? I get the executive team together and we define what I call ‘the North Star’. What is the vision for the company that the leadership team agrees upon?”

How important is alignment, and how do you move from a direction to real actions?

“Alignment is key. I sometimes jokingly say, only after the executive team ‘signs the vision in blood’, it’s time to move to strategy. That’s the third step. Where are we today and then where do we want to be? Which strategic initiatives will it take to get there? I usually gather the top 100 people and involve them in strategy creation.”

What really makes people engaged in a change process? I believe passionate people make a company successful, don’t you?

“Yes! After the strategy has been set, and everybody knows the vision, the next step is to reinforce the values and behaviors that you want the entire organization to follow. Unless everybody has the same attitude, you will not be able to execute any strategy.

I have always been very keen on behaviors. I like people to respectfully challenge each other. And be frank. You have to be ready for some honest feedback and even some conflict at times. But this is how you improve and move forward. If the organization is not ready to accept this, the business is not going to grow.”

Company values help define desirable attitudes and behaviors. Let’s talk about how this relates to company culture.

“I believe it is extremely important for a company to create the right culture for putting a strategy into practice. In order for people to adopt new behaviors and have a positive attitude, you need to communicate. Make clear to everybody what the objectives are, and why you have set them. Really engage them, be clear and transparent. It doesn’t matter if you have 50 or 1,000 people in your organization. Everybody needs to know the clear direction the company is working toward.”

I remember you often spoke about existing patterns that can stand in the way of success. How do you help people break through those kinds of behaviors?

“People need to understand why change is necessary. In that process, I generally group people’s reactions into 3 categories:

• Glad to get some fresh air. Their attitude is, ‘Let’s make it happen.’ These people don’t need to be convinced.
• Apprehensive, but willing to try. Their attitude is, ‘I will go which way the wind blows.’ These people need to be coached and engaged more. This means, celebrate successes and show them the benefits. Usually this helps them to be positive about the changes.
• Opposing change. Their attitude is, ‘I know better than you’. It is important to be fair and help them understand. Provide training where possible, but if behaviors don’t change, it jeopardizes the entire organization. Unless they change, they can’t be part of the team going forward.”

That’s a clear analysis. It makes me think. This is the way to engage people in the beginning of a change process. How do you keep people on track in the long term?

“That’s where the value of the company’s vision becomes so important. The vision should not be a static thing, because business is not static. So, a company’s vision needs to be in line with how its business evolves over time. Most importantly, it has to be communicated to employees in a way that makes sense both in the short and long term. You know, a vision statement like ‘becoming number 1’ is not clear and compelling enough. What does that mean, really? It needs to be something that excites employees and makes them feel proud to contribute. I have seen how energized and committed people get when their company supports social and sustainable causes. Keeping your people on track really comes down to your organization’s purpose. Purpose is the primary reason people choose to work for a company these days. It’s more important to employees than money or location, especially for younger people joining the workforce today.”

This hits close to home for me. You’re talking about people – planet – profit. Connecting company values to individual values. You mentioned that purpose is important to young people. That brings me to a final question: what tips can you give to young leaders?

“First, I recommend learning about empathy. It’s important to understand where others are coming from. Be kind and respectful, be humble. Give praise to your team. Make the other person shine! Success should not be so much about you.

In addition, communicate clearly and transparently. You know, sometimes people become leaders because they have strong technical skills. But they are not trained in communicating and motivating others. As a leader, you need to help your team understand why a specific decision has been made, and give people regular feedback.

At the end of the day, you need to look after the larger organization. Give compliments where they are due. And at the same time, be honest with people who underperform. Because it’s not fair to the rest of the team if you don’t ask people to step up when needed. This type of approach benefits the entire organization.”

Alexandre Mallmann has more than twenty years of experience in the automotive industry. He served as CEO of Mercedes-Benz Financial Services in Portugal and Spain and later of Mercedes-Benz Auto Finance China. Since 2018, he is CEO of AutoGravity, a leading digital car-shopping and financing platform based in California, USA.

Camiel Gielkens is CEO of Schouten & Nelissen Group and Relevance. He was general manager and executive coach for Schouten China from 2012 to 2018.

Tuesday 8 March 2022: International Women's Day. This year's theme is solidarity. Because gender emancipation is not one-sided, and men benefit from equality, too. To discuss that idea, Nathalie van der Poel (Leadership development & organizational transformation consultant and executive coach), Camiel Gielkens (CEO Schouten & Nelissen Company) and Marieke Schouten (Chief DNA Officer) sit around the digital table.

They talk about female leadership, or rather what it isn't, and discuss where the problems of gender inequality are expressed. Besides identifying the resulting problems, we also need to celebrate the added value of diversity, all three agree. Because differences mean several perspectives in an organization. That generates great value, so long as it is correctly enforced and applied in the organizational culture. The question that remains is: how do we do that?

Categorizing is a skill you can (un)learn

A term we often come across nowadays is 'female leadership'. But is this an adequate description? Nathalie doesn't think so: 'There's no such thing as female leadership. Yes, women may take a different approach or demonstrate different behavior, but I feel that this term excludes people. We are talking here about diversity and inclusion, so we need to stop using this term.' Camiel wonders why we use that term then, and where it comes from. After all, we don't talk about typical male leadership. Why do we specify leadership by a woman by her gender?

Marieke explains this by the functioning of our brain: 'We are programmed to categorize. We link certain characteristics to gender, which is how stereotypes arise. Thatcher, for example, was seen as the Iron Lady.' Nathalie agrees and explains that we quickly conform to those stereotypical roles. 'Using these terms doesn't help anyone. We need to focus on what an organization and its employees need. Do we want a warm, innovating, harmonious or result-driven culture? We can use these terms without categorizing them as male or female.'

Inclusive leadership starts with the system

So we need to approach leaders differently. Marieke talks about a previous manager who she considered her role model. He led his team by empowering people and inspiring them. That was real inclusive leadership: everyone had a voice. Besides looking at the leaders, Marieke feels that the phase an organization is in also determines the type of leadership. Then it's important to explore the extent to which the leader and organization are a match. Camiel: 'Exactly. What type of organization do you want to be? When you know that, you can adapt and focus on that.' Based on that thought, it is easier to work towards inclusion.

Because according to Nathalie, inclusive leadership is about closing the gap between the cultural norm and a minority. 'If there's a minority in an organization somewhere, based on for instance ethnicity, religion or gender, and all the attention is then focused on that group, you can naturally strengthen that category, but only to a certain point. When this point is reached, but there is still a gap between that strengthened, well-functioning minority and the cultural norm of the organization, we need to look at the system. How do we become inclusive enough?'

The blueprint of the management

Camiel talks about a recent conversation he had with a top woman manager who was wondering about her next step. This wasn't about her own ability, but rather whether she wanted it: 'She was wondering whether she wanted to fit into the mold we talked about earlier. Do I want to work those long hours? Do I feel at home there? Can I do myself justice there?' Marieke agrees: 'There seems to be a blueprint of what the top looks like, what we feel we need to be.' Marieke studied the promotion opportunities for women, which revealed that they think differently than the average male manager. But instead of adapting, top women also started rethinking how they could work in that top role. 'I'm a mother, I can do that job, but I'm going to do it differently and do the work in four days instead of five. They set their own conditions to filling that top role, in consultation with their partner,' she says. Ultimately, it's about making choices with respect to wishes - do I want this, but also about setting conditions - that's how I'm going to do it. 'It's important here to remember: is it about the position or the organization? Sometimes, the company simply doesn't suit you,' Marieke adds.

What's interesting is the difference in the way in which men and women make a career. Camiel: 'I see men often being quite competitive in organizations. They start competing, something women don't seem to do so much. Perhaps this is due to different dynamics and another perspective. Do you recognize that?' Nathalie nods: 'Yes, recent studies show that in some organizations, rivalry and competition are important skills for moving up the ladder. That doesn't suit many women. They can move up in other ways, for example in a different organization.' However, this obviously doesn't apply to all women and men. These dynamics often occur, but not all women reject competition, and not all men want to compete. Because that's when men also encounter stigmas. Nathalie gives an example: 'If men work a day less, they are sometimes overlooked as a potential candidate for the executive board.' This is where the importance of mutual solidarity emerges.

That's exactly the reason why Nathalie emphasizes inclusive leadership. Because while we are (or hope to be) very aware of the problems, both men and women conform to a certain mold. That mold needs to become more flexible to be sufficiently inclusive for women and men. In other words: the organizational culture must change. How do we ensure that we change the mold, or the culture, instead of ourselves?

Awareness outside your bubble

Camiel mentions the importance of diversity. Marieke agrees: 'It's logical that all boards are the same. You surround yourself with likeminded people, your bias.' Many organizations are already trying to improve this. For example, some companies use anonymous, external assessments for filling executive roles. The management then soon has more women. Awareness is therefore the first step, and we can then build on that. '‘We need to engage in dialogue and give each other space,’ says Nathalie. 'Diversity can be very rewarding, particularly because men and women are biologically different. I believe that this can provide great value for organizations, so long as it is well integrated in the organizational culture.' Because she knows from experience that those unconscious prejudices can be stubborn: 'Differentiation and ordering remain. As an organization, you therefore need to create psychological safety by setting boundaries and standardizing behavior.'

We know the saying 'change starts with you'. Clearly, the organizational culture benefits from change. Organizations need to offer psychological safety and space to talk to each other. What can we do ourselves to respond to that? Marieke says that she has benefitted a great deal from the role models in her life. Precisely the people who aren't like you can teach you a lot and inspire you. It starts with looking for what you need, what you want to learn and what is important to you. On Women's Day, many female role models are celebrated. With the 2022 theme, likeminded men also have a say. Because we can only achieve gender emancipation together. So, engage in the dialogue and look beyond the bubble of your bias. Today is a good day to start your search. Because Marieke knows: ‘For every area in which you want to grow, you can find a role model.'

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In the Dutch BNR Podcast ‘Werkverkenners’, which roughly translates to ‘Work Explorers’, host Rens de Jong finds answers to his and your work-related questions. He invited our VP Customized Anke Baak to discuss what is called the ‘blind spot’ our subconscious creates upon a first impression of someone or something. Oftentimes, this extremely fast information processing is helpful: it saves us a lot of time. However, the habit of generalizing can also keep us from seeing someone’s full potential. Hence, working on your blind spot, or biases, is crucial in effective leadership.

Rens wonders how reliable our first impressions are, since these are produced in seconds. Anke mentions the importance of such processes in prehistory: to survive, we needed to make assumptions and think fast. But today, jumping to conclusions can work against you. Especially as a manager, it’s important to remain open to information –preferably facts – which might cause you to reject your initial assumptions, Anke says.

Where does our blind spot come from?

Unfortunately, changing your biases is easier said than done. Anke: “If you’ve got a brain, you’ve got a bias.” She describes three processes in our brain which contribute to the formation of biases.

• Generalizing: we draw general conclusions from particular situations or people.
• Selective perception: we tend to only register information which matches our existing frame of reference. Herein we can distinct two opposite effects. The ‘halo effect’ occurs when our previous positive evaluation of someone or something influences our opinion in other areas. The opposite effect, the ‘horn effect’, negatively influences our opinions based on an unfavorable bias.
• Warmth and competence model: we have a tendency to attribute competence to people we feel more connected to, who resemble ourselves.

As an expert on the subconscious brain, Genieke Hertoghs explains that our subconscious works a thousand times faster than our conscious brain. This hands the subconscious a great deal of conviction. Genieke elaborates: “The goal of our subconscious is to keep our ego intact, to protect it. When someone says certain things which go against your point of view, this person receives a negative point in our subconscious brain. And when this ‘minus one’ is registered, it’s hard to change. After all, the subconscious makes sure our existing opinions remain.” This is a shame, since we might miss interesting perspectives, stories and information from people who have different ideas than we do, Rens responds. Anke agrees: “In today’s tight labor market, organizations can’t afford to lose valuable employees because of the consequences of insufficient leadership. This causes employees to not feel seen or heard. Moreover, they can’t miss out on the talent and eye-opening potential which would be available in diverse teams. Inclusive leadership is crucial to reach an organization’s full potential.”

“Be curious about facts which might change your bias.”

“But how do we get rid of these processes and biases?”, Rens asks. Anke stresses the importance of determination: if there’s a necessity, it’s possible to reduce such generalizing thinking. It’s crucial to be curious, Anke says. “We need to be interested in the facts which might change our bias. Because if we’re not curious about and open to such information, we will simply dismiss information that is not congruent with our bias as a stroke of luck or coincidence.”

Put your bias to the test

It’s quite clear that diversity is important, but raises challenges because of the familiar blind spot. How can we work on putting our default mode of bias on stand-by? Genieke advices to stay on top of your thoughts. Step one is to acknowledge you’re not understanding someone, as soon as you realize this. More importantly, aim to recognize their potential. “Put this person on a pedestal for once, ask questions and discover more about his or her perspective. Find the point where this person is right and you are wrong,” she elaborates. Digging through what you might feel is “garbage” information at first, is called ‘pulling’.

This is related to the concept of the ‘pyramid of perception’. This implies that once the other feels heard and seen, you will climb the ladder of their perception. The higher you climb, the higher the other’s willingness to change their perception of you. Once this is achieved, you can cooperate in achieving your goals together, as a manager and an employee. The other side of the coin would be achieved by ‘pushing’, which would be to blindly follow your subconscious into protecting your ego. In this case, you feel the need to convince the other and by doing so, you attract resistance and get awarded with a low position on the perspective pyramid. This needs to be avoided. Therefore, Genieke stresses the importance of digging towards the underlying food for thought: “Eventually, you will run into something valuable, something that makes you think: ‘you’re right, you have a point’. That’s where you gain profit.”

Creating dialogue for sustainable organizational and personal change

Rens understands the importance of being aware of your blind spot. But how can we achieve this in an entire company culture? He fears that the digging goes wrong, that his bias takes over and conflicts arise. Anke explains the importance when working on a company’s culture of investing in the dialogue: “During Relevance’s companywide learning programs, groups of employees are all part of the same trainings and discussions. Together, we open the dialogue about selective perception and its consequences. This creates safe and open communication. Another helpful aspect is working with case studies to reflect on what goes well and which aspects could use improvement. With multiple sessions and interventions, people really get to practice and put their acquired knowledge to use. That’s when they realize: half of my thinking is based on prejudices.”

That’s an interesting point: what if you’re the blind spot? What can be done when you feel your manager doesn’t see your potential? Anke believes the most important thing is to not start believing this is true. Because once you feel your manager doesn’t believe in you, you become self-conscious, which affects your performance negatively. “It all starts with believing in yourself,” she says. “Keep your back straight and prove your manager wrong with facts. Think of the warmth and competence model: making sure to connect with your manager; If someone likes you, it helps.”

“Discover what drives their perspective.”

Genieke offers another exercise: writing down what you know about your manager. Forgo the facts, but try to focus on how this person views the world, what drives them, which themes and why? Oftentimes, your notebook remains (almost) empty. The conclusion being you actually don’t know that much about your superior. “If you want to climb on their perception ladder, you need to discover what drives their perspective,” she adds. In short: asking questions while letting go of your bias will help you gain the desired plus points in their subconscious. Consequentially, they will view you differently and take your ideas more seriously.

“In conclusion, we all have a bias,” Rens says. Without confronting it, you might be wasting your team’s potential. People who don’t feel heard and seen, are less likely to make the best effort. By climbing on the perception pyramid, manager and employee share a better understanding and therefore better cooperation. Creating an open dialogue is a great way to start this process and create sustainable change in company culture. Good luck!

Are you interested in uncovering your own and your organization’s blind spot? Contact us for more information!