The number one skill every leader should have

Management expert and CEO at Publicis Sapient, Nigel Vaz, explains why having the ability to   ‘relearn’ is the single most important skill every leader should have

CREDIT: This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared on Management Today

Nigel Vaz has spent time with some of most influential people in recent memory – Sir Tim Berners Lee and Nelson Mandela to name a couple.  These successful people shared two important characteristics; the ability to personify transformation in their fields and to achieve amazing feats others believed to be impossible. Nigel compares the challenges these leaders faced with those of today’s world – challenges which his 11-year-old son will have to overcome. “He faces a much more changeable and ambiguous world, where constant learning will be necessary – probably the learning equivalent of a degree every four years for the rest of his life”.

Nigel believes the cliché relating to the necessity for organisations to reinvent themselves holds true. “The only way leaders will get by is by learning, rather than knowing”.

The number one lesson in leadership

Reflecting on his earlier leadership errors as a twenty-something, Nigel admits he was then “almost completely driven by achieving specific, finite, outcomes”. As time went on, the CEO noted the progression in his ability to assess a problem from the macro level to consider real, human issues.

Nigel recalls a particular insight he gained. “I remember one distinct conversation where an objective wasn’t being met, and that person revealed they had been diagnosed with cancer. This really affected me. I put measures in place to make sure my colleague had the best support.

“Doing these more personal things probably made more of a difference to that person’s performance and in eventually reaching that outcome.”

Human level

Since the pandemic there has been a more general focus on human needs at an individual level; as such, the role of a leader has begun to change. “Nowadays I see my role as an orientating one – helping people to be the best version of themselves by giving them the signposts for development, or mentors that they need,” Nigel says. “I try to remind myself how I would have liked to be treated, and that’s how I try and conduct myself”.

In order to make more genuine connections, and have a deeper understanding, Nigel’s agency, Publicis Sapient, has made some significant changes in order to put wellbeing first. The office closed at 3pm on Fridays for a month and now allows staff to work anywhere in the world for six weeks.

This is not an easy process and will require time. Many traits that have been embedded in leaders for years, must now be ‘unlearnt’ in order to follow the model which Nigel recommends. That said, thus far, this commitment to long-term learning has been a major success for Publicis Sapient, as shown by their Digital Life Index research.

The future is unknown. It may, therefore, be necessary for many of us to make profound and genuine structural changes to our organisations, so that they can be best prepared to thrive amongst the chaos that is to come.