Chapter 9: The Art of Leadership: Purpose and Inclusion

THE CURRENCY THAT makes organizations run and survive over time is leadership. And with the introduction of rapidly changing technologies, this may be more important than ever before.

Today, a new currency has surfaced that increases the level of organizational success; its name: data. No, not the character Data from Star Trek, but actual data, gathered to help us understand what is happening in the world. Data is now considered by many as one of the most valuable resources that organizations have at their disposal. So, it is important for leadership today to deal with massive amounts of data and to integrate the insights derived from data analysis into decision making. With this reality in sight, algorithms are increasingly penetrating organizations and forcing us to think about their impact on how we run our organizations.

One very specific challenge concerns the extent to which algorithms will become autonomous decision makers in our organizations. It is a challenge because it brings with it the risk that humans gradually become more dependent on the abilities and advice offered by algorithms. If we become too dependent, we may end up being led by algorithms rather than us leading them. But, would we ever consider those algorithms as likely candidates to lead our organizations?

Well, consider the following. Algorithms are consistent learners, enabling them to enlarge their cognitive abilities with every new insight. The abilities that algorithms gain in this way are largely in the areas of speed of data processing, pattern recognition, and creating more transparency in the data available. These are all areas that can make organizations smarter and help them make more accurate forecasts and predictions. Hence, it could make sense to have algorithms develop into leaders. But, as we have seen, the reality is that algorithms as leaders is not an easy sell and unlikely to happen.

Know your context

One thing that algorithms are less likely to learn and develop is a kind of human-like intuition that recognizes the impact of changing contexts. This limitation makes them de facto unfit to lead any organization.

Why does context recognition matter?

We know that algorithms today are so sophisticated that they can beat humans in almost any game. Since 1997, when world champion Gary Kasparov was beaten by Deep Blue in a game of chess, technology has improved so much that today even the AI in our cell phones could beat many world champions. But, and here it comes, they can only do so in the specific context of that one game – not in any other game. The reason for this is that, in reality, an algorithm does not even know that it is playing a game. Algorithms do so well in playing games simply because they are better than a human at analyzing and identifying successful behavioral patterns and employing them to win.

So, if it is the case that an algorithm does not know what a game is, how then can we expect an algorithm to be able to lead others?

Algorithms will very likely not understand the wide range of abilities that leaders use across situations to be successful. In fact, algorithms are, for example, limited in seeing the relevance of showing empathy when employees get stressed or when situations have changed in such a way that employees feel somewhat at a loss. Because of their analytical strengths, algorithms are applicable to anything related to management, but their weakness with soft skills makes them less suited for leadership. Leadership is a different kind of animal, something that algorithms cannot easily translate.

As we have seen in chapter six, it is the soft skills that make us uniquely human and the most likely candidates to lead. This is all great, but another question we also need to address is what kind of leadership styles make the best use of our human abilities?

This question is important because it will be exactly those leadership styles that our future leaders will have to display in an increasingly automated work environment. Below, I will explain that there are two leadership styles, purpose-driven and inclusive, which will be prominent in the future.

On the importance of purpose

For an automated workforce to work effectively it requires access to data. Data is oil for algorithms to create value for the organization. Although data is often hailed as a new kind of resource for today’s organizations, the reality is that data has always been important to business!

It is only the case that today – with an increased focus on the notion of big data – we are so much more eager to work with data to the benefit of our organization. Since their inception, business schools have taught that one of the first and most important steps towards starting a business is to ensure that you analyze the data out there. In fact, businesspeople have always known that it is necessary to become familiar with data that can reveal what customers want, what opportunities exist, which industries have significant growth margins and so forth.

With the arrival of digital data, we have entered an era where the ability to work with data has become something of a highly valued expertise. Today, organizations have so much data available that finding out which data is important and which one not has become a (valued) skill in itself. Organizations today need to be more equipped than ever to structure their data efficiently and make it accessible across different systems and departments. The necessity for such a co-ordinated approach makes clear that organizations need leadership that is able to interpret available data in light of the company’s goals. Today, leaders need to use data in ways that optimize their business strategies. Isn’t this happening then? If we listen to the markets, it seems like that is not the case. Organizations in fact are failing largely in structuring their data and building a data-focused culture.179

A problem thus seems to be that organizations today are failing to build a culture that structures and utilizes the massive amounts of data available. As companies are often unable to build the right culture that meets the demands of a data-driven business environment, we can then only conclude that the right kind of leadership is not present. So, what kind of leadership is needed to ensure that we achieve the best outcomes in a business environment that runs on data?

To answer this question, allow me to ask another question first. Specifically, why is it that, as an organization, we need to use data?

We use data to develop business models that will help us design the right strategies to create value. A business model describes how we want to do business; which stakeholders’ interests matter; and identifies the actions that we need to take. Business models thus need data and we cannot do without. But, of course, we do not need just any kind of data. We need data that can help us to decide on strategies that create the kind of value that we, as an organization, care about. The kind of value organizations care about is defined by the purpose an organization. Purpose makes clear why we are in business in the first place and, as such, should be non-negotiable. It is therefore supposed to direct and guide the efforts of a company.

The notion of purpose has gained a lot of traction in the last few years. When companies enter a new, complex situation and realize that change is needed, organizations ideally should fall back on their purpose to guide strategic decisions. Leaders are important in this process because they need to help us to focus on the things that matter most to the organization. In an era where data significantly shapes our strategies, it is important to ensure that we use the right kind of data – right in the sense that they are relevant to the purpose we are pursuing. Organizations today cannot afford to be ambiguous about their purpose. Once the purpose is clear and shared by all, organizations are more efficient in using data to develop better business models. Purpose helps us to focus on the priorities and thus make it easier to select the most relevant data to work with.

Because of these challenges it is clear that the organization of tomorrow needs to be run by purpose-driven leaders. Purpose-driven leadership serves as a compass, guiding the company in its growth and delivery of success. Purpose-driven leadership consists of two important dimensions that can be developed and trained (see figure 2).

First of all, purpose provides the content to the vision of the organization.180 When you are clear about your purpose, it will be easier to envision what you want to achieve. Second, a clear purpose helps to establish the values that you want to pursue and how you will display this in both life and work. It is important that others understand your values, so that they can understand how you do business, treat others, and, more specifically, what you consider ethical.

Figure 2: Being purpose-driven by being a visionary and ethical leader

Visionary leadership

When work environments are transformed into settings where human employees interact with algorithms, people may become worried about losing their jobs; concerned about the longer-term implications of automation for the organization; and lack the confidence to use advice provided by algorithms. It is in moments like this that leadership is required, as the integration of algorithms in the decision-making cycle needs to make sense to people to be effective. To achieve such sense of meaning, leaders are required to communicate their vision in a way that justifies the use of algorithms as co-workers. The vision should depict what the future may look like if we embark on this new journey.

In the automated era, this new journey is characterized by a situation where humans and algorithms collaborate to co-create. However, to achieve this kind of collaboration, employees need to be inspired and empowered, which is something visionary leaders do.181 A visionary leader energizes people by building a bridge between what we see happening today and what we should do with it to ensure value is created in the future.

Communication of a vision can thus help people to link present efforts with what can possibly be achieved in the future.182 At the same time, this transformational process signals what really matters to the organization and its members. Indeed, the added value created by bridging the present and the future has to be appealing to employees so that they commit to the journey of change.183

How to develop your visionary abilities?

A vision is needed that inspires people to follow your chosen direction by contributing significant time and effort to their jobs. After all, it is the contributions of the others that will make your leadership effective. In the era of automation, leaders are only effective if the vision of algorithms and humans working together is supported by employees. What do leaders need to focus on to promote their visionary skills?

Be aware of the value you want to create

As the articulation of a vision implies a change in the current situation, leaders need to train themselves to be clear on what kind of value they wish to create for both themselves and others. The direction that you choose therefore needs to make sense in light of your values.

To highlight such value, you should stay motivated and energetic. Indeed, being resilient is one of the biggest challenges for a leader driving change. So, it is important that you take good care of your health and well-being and, above all, keep nurturing the values that give purpose to what you do.

The direction taken by your vision needs to make sense to others. As such, communicate clearly what is waiting ahead and why it is so important that the desired outcome be achieved. The vision should be formulated in such a way that everyone also realizes that they need to participate to succeed. It is also crucial that employees understand that your vision, which incorporates algorithms as co-workers, is happening to foster a better performing organization.

Obviously, being ready to deal with the demanding task of developing and communicating an appealing vision requires you to do your homework. One thing that successful visionary leaders do is engage in scenario planning exercises. In these exercises, you imagine the different ways a vision can be communicated and explore which version is likely to be the most effective way to help your audience connect with the tasks that you are asking of them (i.e. working with the new diversity).

Be courageous in setting the stage

A vision holds the promise of a road map that will help create value, but also challenge the old ways of working. This requires leaders to speak out in clear and direct ways, which may lead to people feeling pushed out of their comfort zones. Careful crafting of the message and preparation is thus needed. It is one thing to challenge people by pointing out what is wrong with the current situation. It is, however, another thing to persuade them to take your disruptive message seriously and consider you the legitimate authority to follow.

Courage takes two forms here and, in both, you will need to lead by example. First, you need to be courageous to challenge what people are used to and initiate change. Second, you need to show courage by putting in a continuous effort to make your vision a reality. Obviously these steps will be easier to take if your vision is one that you care deeply about. Rather than taking energy, these efforts will be meaningful to you and thus energize you.

Communicate to create

Getting people to engage with your vision depends entirely on your ability to communicate. First, in your communication you should use the right context to explain to others why change is needed. Providing this context on the challenges that lie ahead will also help to explain why your vision can create the much-needed future value. For these reasons, it is advised that the kind of language used directs the audience to the most relevant and applicable data available. This data should highlight what is happening in our environment; what this means for our company (values); what this entails for our future (vision); and what our resources (the employees) need to do to drive this change.

In the context of automation, leaders should frame responses to say that the business requires algorithms to be utilized as the necessary platform to achieve the company’s required values. If they do not, it is likely that algorithms will be seen as a threat, rather than an opportunity. Also, in your efforts to promote the idea of this new diversity as the new reality, your language should emphasize we rather than them. As I mentioned in chapter one, at this moment, humans and algorithms have not really moved far beyond interacting in terms of us versus them. To go beyond this kind of thinking, a vision needs to include the idea that we will only achieve value together.

Ethical leadership

Leadership that is pursuing a purpose is motivated by clearly defined values. Hence, purpose-driven leaders are ethically aware and able to make sound moral judgments and decisions. Leaders demonstrating the abilities of an ethical person inspire employees’ motivation and commitment. When comparing someone you believe to be an ethical person with someone you do not, ask yourself: who would you rather follow?

I think the answer will be obvious to most of you. Ethical leaders are more influential because we perceive them to be high in integrity and can be relied upon to accept responsibility when needed. Since we hold these leaders in such high esteem, we use them as our models to engage in more responsible behavior ourselves.

It is exactly this kind of influence that algorithms cannot bring to the table. Algorithms do not have the ability to connect with humans at the level of shared values and desires. They cannot embody the ethical values that humans recognize in an (emotional) inspiring way. Put simply, algorithms cannot lead by example and thus cannot elicit an ethical mindset in others. It is exactly this ability to lead by example that is one of the key dimensions of ethical leadership. Ethical leaders serve as role models with the aim of providing ethical guidance to employees.184 It is through the virtuous actions of leaders that followers are educated and motivated in ethical ways!

Reducing the complexity of ethics

So, does all of the above mean that algorithms are completely excluded from the business of leading in ethical ways? Not necessarily. Some ethical principles (as based on the philosophy of Immanuel Kant) assume a rational approach to what is the right thing to do. For example, Kant’s idea of the categorical imperative states that people should be guided by fundamental ethical principles e.g. you should not lie. This principle should be used across all situations. Algorithms can definitely learn to make ethical judgments in such a way. This practice means that ethics will have to be seen as a set of universal principles that apply across all situations.

In such algorithmic reality, however, several risks exist. First, ethics will largely run in scripted ways and, as such, be experienced as fixed and robotic. If we accept this type of ethical decision making, we would adopt a leadership model that follows a reductionist approach, which cannot deal with the ethical complexities which occur in reality.

It would also simply be unfair. Each stakeholder has their own perspective on any given decision being made, and at least some sensitivity to these different perspectives should be considered by any leadership. Therefore, it is fair to say that when ethics are at stake, we need leaders who are aware of the different interests and concerns of the stakeholders involved. It is this ability to (emotionally) connect to the concerns and perspectives of others that makes ethical leaders so effective. It allows them to create psychologically safe workplaces where employees can speak up.

Ethical leadership cannot only be based on the application of rational decision models, it has to be built on an ability to show empathy, combined with the skill to accommodate the concerns of all people involved.

Augmenting ethics through automation

To bring our scope of ethical leadership in an automated era into focus, it is safe to say that ethical leadership cannot be replaced by algorithms. As explained in chapter six, one unique human ability is to make ethical judgments based on concerns of care and the ability to empathize. Without these unique characteristics, ethics become something mechanical and run the risk of ending up as another ticking-the-box exercise. I think that ethics deserve better treatment. Algorithms may, however, play a supporting role in arriving at judgments of what is right or wrong. It would mean that algorithms can also take the role of providing augmenting capability to leaders making ethical choices.

Business ethics scholars have introduced the distinction of ethical leaders being both moral people and moral managers.185 As moral managers, ethical leaders are expected to comply with laws and regulations, establish ethical expectations and hold employees accountable. Such tasks correspond well with a more administrative approach. Indeed, laws and expectations can be verified in objective ways. As management by algorithm is a certainty waiting to happen, algorithms could well take care of the managerial dimension of ethical decision making.

It is a different story, however, when we refer to the need for ethical leaders to be moral people. It is this dimension that turns ethical leaders into effective and inspiring leaders, who motivate others to act in ethical ways. If our leaders are moral people, they will connect with us in more authentic ways. After all, seeing leaders as individuals caring about morals is likely to connect more deeply with employees than algorithms taking an ethical stand. As such, the ability to transfer ethical abilities cannot be grounded in an algorithmic ability to make a rational analysis of all the ethical principles out there.

How to develop your ethical leadership abilities?

Ethics matter in today’s business world. The main ambition of any ethical leader is to ensure that a work culture is built where employees are ethically savvy enough to judge the right course of action. How to achieve such influence?

Be clear on your own values

Your actions should be the best representative of your values. So, you need to walk the talk. In fact, the information that people have about your behavior is spontaneously categorized in people’s brain as reflecting who you are as a person. Only then will people say whether you have a good or bad character.

As such, if you are not consistent and confident in how you want to treat others, those that are supposed to follow you will also be unclear on the issue. As a result, they will be unable to categorize you as a moral person and less likely to comply with the initiatives you develop. Therefore, it is imperative that leaders engage in reflective exercises that reveal what it is that drives you in life and work; what those drives mean in light of the values that you preach; and how you can derive energy from following and executing those values in your leadership role.

Do not only allow rules to dictate ethics

It is no secret that people do not like to work in uncertain business settings. For this reason, we are quick to employ fixed rules that reduce uncertainty and ambiguity. For sure, rules do help to know how to act, but do they really inspire and motivate us to be the best version of ourselves? Probably not.

Why would this be the case? First, rules can indeed create a framework that helps to guide decisions on how to act. However, rules are usually reactive, which means that a rule is implemented after something went wrong. As such, using rules as your guiding moral compass is a rational way of acting and does not allow you to anticipate and understand instances where ethics lapse. You can only be reactive, not pro-active, when it comes down to ethics. It does not help to foster your intuitive sense of whether something is wrong or right. And, as such, you do not develop your ethical judgment.

Second, people are not predictably rational. In fact, they may be predictably irrational.186 Rather than optimizing their behavioral strategies based on existing knowledge, human emotions disrupt logic and systematic processing of data in ways that makes them act differently than can be predicted by rational models.

These two points make it clear that if we consider a list of rules to be our ethical compass, and make sound ethical judgments based on these, then we are mistaken. It is not the case that rules cannot be used. No, it is the case that rules are not sufficient. And because they are not sufficient, they should not be treated as replacing – by means of algorithms – the ethical judgment of a human. Both are needed.

So, rules can be used to put together the ethics of the company, but not at the expense of preventing people from further developing their moral compass. As such, in addition to a clear set of rules, leaders have to discuss the standards and ethical expectations of the company they represent. This way, when ethical challenges – not mentioned or tackled by the set of rules – have to be dealt with, people will still have their ability to make sound judgment calls.

Create a culture of speaking up

People will more easily engage in reflective thinking about the ethical consequences of business decisions, if the decision is perceived as fair by the workforce. To achieve such a level of engagement, employees need to be given a voice. Giving employees a say in how companies are run is not only effective from the perspective of enhancing performance, but also from the perspective of building ethical cultures.

Indeed, giving employees a voice contributes to an increase in trust and openness, which are crucial elements when building an ethical work culture. For example, companies where employees voice their concerns regarding questionable business practices have cultures where ethical awareness is high. The benefit of such increased awareness is that it helps to create a shared understanding of the values that the company considers a priority. It also helps to instill a culture in which ethical failures and lapses can be discussed and resolved as soon as possible.

Interestingly, contrary to making use of strongly regulated work environments (demanding rules to be obeyed) where monitoring systems require substantial financial investments, voice cultures are a cheap psychological way of motivating employees to be ethically aware.

Practice compassion

It is a law of nature: people fail! True, not much debate is needed to establish that failure is a part of the human experience. Nevertheless, although failure may be part of who we are, we have a peculiar aversion towards our own and other’s failure. There is nothing wrong with that, but what could be wrong is that this aversion motivates us to create systems (or even societies) aimed at rooting out failure altogether. Given our human nature, that is potentially a dangerous practice.

We know that to improve, one needs to be able to learn. So, how does learning take place? Learning happens when failure is still a possibility and conditions exist that allow time and effort to understand why failure happened. The same process takes place if we want our leaders to build a workforce that is ethically savvy. Indeed, if people fail and there is no human leadership in place to model ethical expectations, then it is safe to say that an ethically-aware work climate does not exist and people will not learn. To sharpen and develop ethical judgments, people need to understand why failure occurred in order to adjust their behaviour accordingly. Algorithms are not equipped to do this; they can neither build ethically-aware cultures by means of connecting to other employees, nor learn through a process of reflection over a span of time.

Summary: The benefits of purpose-driven leadership

Purpose-driven leadership is a requirement for businesses where automation is gradually increasing, because it allows for:

Setting priorities to look at data

Companies today are keen to combine different sources of data, like human resource data with social media data. This combination of more traditional data (available directly within the company) with online data reveals a massive volume of both structured and unstructured data. How do we look at such large volumes of data? Which data sets do we use to answer the questions we have? To make such choices, it is important that you, as a leader, know what kind of value you want to create. What is the purpose of the organization and what does it mean in terms of the value that we are creating for our different stakeholders? Having clear answers to these questions helps to frame the most relevant data.

Framing the right kind of questions for the right kind of strategy

Once the most relevant data is selected, we need to know what kind of questions we want to see answered. What is it that we want to ask the data?

Getting answers to the right questions will help to develop the right kind of strategy. The right set of questions helps identify the steps that need to be taken to achieve the purpose of the organization. The identification of these steps – as based on an accurate picture of your environment – thus feeds significantly into the strategy the company should adopt.

Providing a focus on how to analyze the data

Once questions are identified and initial analyzes are undertaken, new and unexpected challenges may emerge. In those moments, purpose serves as a guide to put these new challenges into the spotlight and potentially reconsider the data approaches used so far. Moments like this may reveal that data previously considered irrelevant may now be needed to delineate the most optimal strategy for the company. This observation again underscores the need for data to be widely shared within the company – access should not be restricted to data scientists. All departments should be able to access data, because new challenges will likely require a new pair of eyes to assess the problem. Under such circumstances, data scientists profit from the perspectives of other departments.

Helping to integrate new business demands with the values of the organization to create relevant and valuable strategies

Unstructured data can provide insights to trends that were not anticipated, or identify new demands that were not part of your original business model. According to analytics provider SAS, such new facts can directly drive the identification of strategies that will make the organization successful.

At the same time, unstructured data can also bring much uncertainty, for example, in how to look at the data. Such fact-driven decisions require a guiding framework, and this can be delivered by purpose-driven leadership. Indeed, when unstructured data enters the equation, leadership is needed to interpret how the data should be analyzed through the prism of corporate strategy, in order to create the required value to the organization.

Explaining clearly why data is collected and analyzed

The collection and analysis of data can be perceived as an intrusive act, and therefore regarded as violating the privacy of those whose data was collected. A real risk always exists that those stakeholders may consider data strategies to be a means of controlling them. It is therefore important that the reason for asking people for their personal data is always explained clearly, in light of the value the organization wants to create. If this is not done, data collection and analysis will be seen as an end in itself, rather than as a means to achieve something of greater value. It requires purpose-driven leadership to explain the goals of the data scientists and how their expertise will add to the value the organization wants to create. It will be the organizations that are able to create a shared purpose and use it to make sense of their data approach that will promote compliance most effectively.

On the importance of inclusive leadership

The introduction of algorithms to the human workforce will create a new diversity context. In this context, humans and machine will work together with the aim of augmenting human abilities to optimize the value that organizations can create. To achieve this outcome, it is essential that leadership can bring all the actors together in a spirit of collaboration.

Creating collaborative partnerships between humans and algorithms requires building an inclusive work setting. Achieving this requires leaders oriented towards the common good and motivated to use the potential of every team member to create the required added value. Inclusive leaders are thus not so concerned with exerting power and influence over others, but rather focused on creating a setting where everyone can participate in the collective effort required.187

Inclusive leaders facilitate work conditions that promote participation by all. Of course, to achieve such levels of participation requires leaders to show that they accept the new diversity idea and actively endorse it. It also requires leaders who can build a sense of connection between humans and algorithms.

As human skills need to be augmented by the use of algorithms, it is essential that the establishment of these connections are not driven by a mechanically-designed co-ordination script. Rather, inclusive leaders promote trust and respect towards humans and algorithms. The aim of inclusive leadership is to ensure that the workforce accepts such diversity in skills and motivates employees to integrate all perspectives to create new and valuable outcomes (see figure 3).

Figure 3: Being inclusive by connecting, being trustworthy, diversity-minded and humble

Connecting leadership

When are leaders effective? Does it depend on their individual performance? Or, does it depend on how they make others perform?

By now, it should be clear that it is more the latter than the former. Leadership is required to be the driving force of change. Successfully transforming a business requires that collective mobilization happens. Leaders are supposed to motivate and inspire people to walk in a certain direction. When this happens, change will take place. Leaders are therefore judged as effective if they can get the collective motivated.

Effective leaders therefore are the ones who can connect others. Leaders need to invest time, energy and resources into establishing high-quality relationships, but these investments will be reciprocated once connections are made. To find the right kind of connection, it is, first of all, important to know what drives people. What are their desires, what do they hope to achieve and why?

People more often connect if frequent and authentic communication takes place. Hence, a necessary skill for inclusive leaders is to be a good communicator, but also a good listener. Listening brings people together, rather than keeping them at a distance, and is therefore considered an essential part of inclusive leadership. Leaders who are able to bring people together and provide a sense of togetherness, use inclusive language emphasizing the connection between all members.188 At this point you may ask, if we assume that inclusive leaders connect people, then isn’t our assertion that their biggest strength should be to be quiet and simply listen a contradiction? Isn’t that a passive approach?

I would beg to differ, and this is why.

To generate a connection between people, communication must establish a platform of common themes that bind people together. The advantage of a platform is that it makes information available to everyone and as soon as people start talking and communicating around a common theme, connection happens. But, before you can engage in this platform-building act, you need to do something else first. You need to find a theme or topic in which people have a shared interest. So, where do you get that information?

Right, from asking questions – and then being prepared to sit back and listen. Or, even more simply, just listening to what people are genuinely talking about. Listening is a more comprehensive behavior than most people think. It is an act that is not passive at all, since you are working to bring information together that can help highlight similarities between people and forge strong social connections.

Listening does not only identify what binds people together. Leaders who connect also need to mobilize people once they are brought together. And, in this stage of leadership, communication also matters. Once people are connected, leaders need to mobilize them to work together in line with a desired purpose. To do so, a clear message needs to be communicated that is contagious and inspires the collective to support the leader in their undertaking. This communicative aspect aligns closely with the ability to be visionary. Visionary leaders are known to use smart narratives, they are able to use the force of what connects people in their storytelling and subsequently uplift the collective to perform.

How to develop your connecting abilities

With the increasing need to share data, departments in organizations cannot work in silos anymore. Leaders who ensure data transparency across the organization therefore need to possess the skills to bring all these groups together and connect them in effective ways. Leaders with connecting skills:

Install a norm to listen first and talk second

Creating connections between different parties will bring the most value if everyone’s potential contributions are recognized and employed. Leadership therefore needs to foster a norm that such forms of knowledge need to be gathered and shared in an active way. Such sharing is achieved more easily if people listen to each other. Only then is room given for communication to take place and, hence, information surfaces more easily. Once the information is there to be picked up, the talking starts. Talking about what we know will help to integrate all knowledge available and motivate performance. It is in this interplay, between listening and talking, that we find inclusive and purpose-driven leadership to work together.

Emphasize the importance of other perspectives

A listening attitude assumes that one takes the perspective of the other party. Although not the same, a strong tendency to take the perspective of others helps to engender an empathetic response to what these others say. Taking the perspective of someone else can help you to cognitively understand what is said and why it matters to this other party. Empathy is the emotional ability to feel what drives the other party to say the things he or she is saying. And, isn’t the combination of I hear you and I feel you the best strategy to connect?

Encourage exchange of feedback

Bringing different parties together goes beyond one-time encounters. When parties are connected, the aim is to build a long-term relationship that facilitates continuous growth, and hence creates greater value over time. For this reason, a common understanding of each other is needed, but over time, this understanding will also need to be updated. Therefore, in the act of connecting, a norm also needs to be installed that the different parties provide feedback to each other. Feedback is a learning tool that parties can use to gain a deeper understanding of the other and thus grow a stronger connection. It helps to correct where needed and improve on what is working.

Trustworthy leadership

It is no secret that people join groups and feel connected with others more easily when trust exists. Trust serves as a social lubricant, or glue, and therefore facilitates co-operation and co-ordination between different parties. Because this wisdom is considered so obvious, a consequence is that many of us do not think consciously about the necessity to continuously create, build and maintain trust anymore. It is only when trust ceases to exist that we suddenly see that all the positive benefits of an inclusive work context do not materialize. As the famous investor, Warren Buffett, once noted, “Trust is like the air we breathe – when it’s present, nobody really notices. When it’s absent, everyone notices.”

It is only when trust is absent that we act, which, of course, is not the most effective way to deal with distrust. Rather, it is better for leaders to be aware that trust needs to be created in almost every action they undertake, as this is the secret to building committed and inclusive teams over time. In other words, leaders need to realize that trust cannot be delegated, leaders need to take responsibility for building it.

Obviously, this reality requires leaders to have the skills to build trust. And, as with many things in life, being able to do so starts with understanding what trust is. In the social sciences, trust is usually defined in a way that addresses the subjective nature of the trust process by emphasizing the beliefs and expectations people have about each other. Therefore, it is often said that trust is in the eye of the beholder.189

These beliefs, in turn, influence the display of trusting behavior. Let us take a look at the most commonly used definition of trust that social science scholars use. For them, trust is “a psychological state comprising the intention to accept vulnerability based upon positive expectations of the intentions or behavior of another.”190 So, if people believe that the other party is competent, honest and not motivated to exploit you, then people are willing to take the risk of being vulnerable with the other party. And, if people are willing to be vulnerable in the presence of others, then they will engage in more positive behaviors. Indeed, a vast number of studies over the years have shown that once employees trust each other, they are more likely to co-operate, share information, and feel happier and more satisfied in their job and in their relationships with others.191,192

Trust building starts with the leader

Assuming that inclusive work cultures rely on the existence of trusting relationships, leaders are expected to signal – by means of their actions – that they can be trusted. It is up to the leader to take the initiative and start building an impression of trust across the company (remember trust cannot be delegated!). Although this may seem obvious to many, the question of who starts the trust building process is, in reality, not an easy one. Too often, those who are willing to volunteer to take the risk of being exploited are few and far between. The result is that we all end up waiting for somebody else to take the first step. What happens then?

If no one takes the first step, we transfer our hope to a third-party system. Such a system is usually a monitoring or other kind of control system. When such control systems are present, we feel confident that others will not exploit us, because they are being monitored. But, is this really the trust we are talking about, that inclusive leaders need? Not really.

Granted, when a control system is present, we trust the reliability and accuracy of the system itself. However, that does not mean that we will now also trust the actions of others. After all, a control system is used to monitor – and maybe even punish – non-co-operative actions of others. Out of fear of punishment, people will collaborate. However, they will not do so because they really want to work together, rather because they have been forced to. So, what do we really know about the intentions of these others when a control system is present? Nothing, really, and this is a problem when it comes down to building trust.

Inclusive leadership deals with the ability to bring people together and create value out of the diverse sampling of individuals who are put together in a group. This requires people to be genuinely interested in each other and therefore trust the other person. Obviously, this requires a kind of trust that is different than the so-called trust installed by a control system. We need trust where people are willing to be vulnerable towards each other and build relationships on shared values, respect and willingness to collaborate. To move groups of individuals to this space, leadership is required to model this kind of behavior. Indeed, we know that effective leaders lead by example. If you, as a leader, display what needs to be done, others will follow and adopt the same kind of mindset.

So how do leaders’ model trustworthy behavior? They do so by showing their vulnerability. How do you show vulnerability? By giving trust to others in a risky situation. In fact, we know from research that if a leader is willing to invest their trust in others, most people will reciprocate.193 This is the reason why they say, trust breeds trust. As a leader, you must set the standard for how people in the organization should act. The norm is to give trust to each other, and thus build a co-operative work setting. Of course, once trust is initiated it needs to be developed and shaped further.

The art of fostering trust

How do you keep building trust? You need to be perceived as trustworthy.194 Don’t forget, trust is in the eye of the beholder, so people will perceive you as a genuine trust builder if they see you as a trustworthy person. Your perceived trustworthiness is used to signal your reputation within the organization. So, it is basically in everyone’s interest to promote and maintain one’s (perceived) trustworthiness. How to do so? What is the magic formula?

Research has shown that there are three dimensions that are particularly relevant in this respect. The first dimension concerns information about your competence. People want to know whether you have the competencies to do your job well. As a leader, you are expected to achieve results and know what others are doing. Of course, competence is very much related to your specific expertise, and therefore is of relative significance to people. That is, a doctor is assumed to be an expert on health, but we do not expect this same doctor to be an expert in fixing your car. So, competence is very domain specific. Also, seeing someone as competent is a flexible notion, meaning that humans assume that competencies can be learnt. So, if someone does not have the necessary competencies, we believe this can be solved by training and education. Information about your competencies is usually found out very quickly.

A second dimension of trustworthiness may take longer to discover, since it concerns the dimension of integrity. Integrity refers to our values and sense of justice. Leaders with integrity are purpose driven and aware of the values they want to pursue. A peculiar thing about integrity is that it is not seen as a flexible notion; if we see people violate standards of justice and display dishonest behaviors, we quickly feel that they must be a bad person.

Interestingly, once established, it is very difficult to change this negative perception. We mainly adhere to the expression, “once a bad person, always a bad person.” The reason for this inflexibility is that we assume that our own personal principles are reflected in our actions towards others. If you exhibit bad behavior, then people will assume that this is the kind of person you are. This is why it is often said that leaders need to walk the talk. Inconsistent behavior suggests doubtful integrity.

The third and final dimension shaping people’s perceptions of trustworthiness is benevolence. Benevolent leaders are seen as those who take care of the interests of others. It is the dimension that underlies the development of positive and healthy relationships. So, benevolent leaders act as a social glue, bringing people closer and more firmly together because they focus on the interests of everyone.

How to develop your trustworthiness

Trustworthy leaders act in ways that lead others to conclude that you are:

A competent individual

Leaders need to be trusted to deliver. The most direct way to assess this is to show that you are successful in executing decisions and achieving results. Results are often dictated by the demands of the situation; in an automated work environment, leaders need to be able to understand what the technological challenges are that lie ahead and demonstrate how they will tackle those challenges. It is important that leaders do not overpromise; promises sound good, but they also raise expectations. If the delivery fails, so too will trust.

Leaders therefore need to show that they are tech savvy and that this knowledge will help them to make the right strategic decision. Again, as I noted earlier, it does not require leaders to be coders, but rather to be aware of the challenges raised by the technological revolution we are witnessing today. In a way, leaders in the 21st century show competence by bringing the right teams of experts together to optimise the use of data to bring the value that is expected.

For example, leaders connecting teams of data scientists with HR and finance teams in transparent and effective ways can help to increase the success rate of digital transformation strategies. The team of data scientists will help their colleagues to see what possibilities are available to digitalize information. Equally, the other teams can help data scientists understand their needs and thus provide input in designing a more user-friendly digital environment. Finally, because successes are rarely achieved immediately, it is important that leaders provide regular updates to the different parties involved on how the challenges are being approached. Even though people have the tendency to look at the actual outcome to infer whether one is competent or not, information about the progress also helps in making favorable impressions regarding your competence.

A high integrity individual

It is crucial that people perceive their leaders as honest and driven by the right values. In an automated work environment, this is especially important when collecting data, since many sensitivities exist about its use. Why is data being collected, how will it be used and will privacy be protected?

The type of behavior that can promote integrity includes open and honest communication to ensure that others are informed about the use of technology and its purpose. It also includes walking the talk, as people expect your actions to be in line with what you have promised. Not being able to live up to the expectations that you put out there will severely damage your reputation, as people will doubt your intentions and promises. Finally, being a person of high integrity also means you must have a respectful attitude towards others. People trust leaders who treat others as human beings with their own unique abilities – regardless of the outcomes that have been achieved. In being able to distinguish the process (how you treat people) from the results (how you reward people), leaders can show themselves as individuals that value and respect the worth of others.

A benevolent individual

At the end of the day, people want to feel that their interests are protected and taken care of. Leaders are also judged on whether they care about and support their employees when they face challenges at work. Especially in the rapidly developing work environments of today’s automation era, employees want to feel secure. It is not the case that with more technology, we will have to show less human care towards others. No, it is exactly the opposite! Obviously, such challenges will take more of your time and demand more of your effort, but enlightened leaders need to be prepared for this.

Also, the process of implementing new technology is far from perfect, as witnessed by many digital transformation failures. In those moments, leaders can make a difference in the lives of employees by offering a sympathetic acknowledgement that the digital transformation process can sometimes be difficult and disruptive.

An individual who communicates in transparent ways

When change sets in, the complexity and pace of work also rises. For leaders, it will be important to have the change process accompanied by transparent and clear communication. The importance of transparent communication will only increase in today’s data-driven organizations. A greater sense of data transparency is required to ensure that everyone knows what data is available and what will be done with it.

Today’s technology revolution requires a more open and de-centralized approach to work. As such, employees today do not accept that an ever-increasing amount of data will be centralized and placed under the control of only a few managers. Data transparency practices in the 21st century require an open access policy to build trust. If data transparency is low, the integrity of the organization is quickly doubted, and suspicion and distrust will set in almost immediately.

Diversity-minded leadership

When bringing people together in a group, the similarities and differences between individuals immediately become obvious. What do you do with the differences that exist? Do we have to consider them disruptive, or do these differences have some value to the collective?

The latter is correct. It is the value of diversity. Societies and its organizations emphasize diversity as an important value that we should respect. The focus on diversity is one of the reasons why inclusive leadership has become widely endorsed. Inclusive leaders recognize the value of diversity and use such differing points of view to both achieve their vision and create more value.

The diversity curator

The ability to appreciate different perspectives may actually be the skill needed in the future. Management thinker Lynda Gratton, a professor of practice at the London Business School, recently pointed out that one of the jobs of the future will be the diversity curator. The role will be to actively seek new perspectives, learn from failures as he/she experiments, and promote the effectiveness and adaptability of the organization. This makes a lot of sense, especially so if we look at the need for leadership to empower both humans and algorithms in their tasks while simultaneously converging their efforts to create value for their organization.

Inclusive leadership also requires leaders to embrace diversity. Inclusive leaders are able to think of diversity as a strength, rather than a weakness, and should therefore experiment with and learn from diversity. This should result in a strong set of diversity beliefs. These beliefs refer to a sense of awareness that diversity can bring benefits as well as possible conflicts to group functioning.195 Such a sense of awareness translates into the belief that diversity serves the promotion of inclusiveness.

Experiment and fail

But, of course, leadership does not simply end with this belief. Something has to be done with it! In this respect, it is also important to be aware that diversity can potentially reveal both positive and negative consequences for the collective. As an inclusive leader, you have to take an active approach to experiment with diversity and have the ability to deal with failure. When failure does occur, it is important that you do not give up on diversity. After all, the most important thing will be to learn from it. And, let’s face it, it is almost a given that within a developing automated work context, it will be inevitable that digital implementation will fail from time to time.

Under those circumstances, we need leaders that have the patience and willingness to experiment, but who will also show compassion to their workforce. In fact, inclusive and compassionate leadership align well if the aim is to promote a diverse workforce. Compassionate leaders are known to make others in the workplace feel safe, which is a prerequisite to engaging in experiments. Neuroimaging research has in fact shown that compassionate leaders build the trust needed to translate diversity into effective work relationships and make employees display high loyalty to those leaders showing compassion.196,197

How to develop your diversity mindset

With an increasingly automated workplace, new challenges will emerge, new types of employees will arrive, and new ways of working need to be explored. Under these circumstances, leaders need to be able to bring all aspects of the new work culture together, which entails cultivating a mindset that puts diversity to good use. To achieve this kind of thinking, leaders need to:

Understand the value of diversity

When pursuing a vision, leaders are faced with many decisions. These decisions are becoming increasingly complicated within the work context of the new diversity. This new environment – where humans and machines are colleagues – raises the need for leaders to ensure that when making an important decision, they look at it from different angles. Diversity helps to make salient different perspectives for the same problem. Therefore, recognizing that diversity can be a strength in your decision-making process in reality means that you truly understand the value of having a diverse work force.

To acquire such an understanding, I suggest that leaders in the 21st century should take an active approach to seeking out new perspectives within the work context. Leaders need to train themselves to integrate the known facts and needs of different parties, with the values that the organization wants to create. This kind of training requires a continuous effort to gather information from different parties with the aim of fostering a habit of engaging in meta-thinking. It is the development of meta-thinking that makes leaders effective, both because it helps to understand the value of the perspectives that different parties adopt, and to integrate the different perspectives into a comprehensive action plan that makes sense in light of the more general vision.

Promote agile thinking

Recognizing the value of diverse perspectives is one thing, but one also needs to make effective use of this knowledge. We live in what is often called a VUCA world: volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous. Because of the introduction of algorithms in the business world, business has become much more difficult to execute. As a result, leaders need to create a culture where the introduction of new technology is met with a willingness to learn. This kind of learning culture ensures that technical knowledge is constantly distributed in order to optimise cross-functional team work.198 The skill of being comfortable with change motivates leaders to consider problems and change from different angles.

Be aware of biased perceptions

As humans, we are not rational beings. Our irrational nature makes us vulnerable to biases in our judgments and decisions. This is especially the case when it comes down to dealing with situations of diversity. Research has shown that we can easily be biased in preferring one perspective over another. We often do so because deep inside (on a subconscious level) we favor one group over another and this implicit belief ultimately influences our decisions and actions.

It is easy to see that humans may run the risk of always favoring the human perspective above the algorithmic one. And this may sometimes be a valid assumption, but we need to make sure that because of our biases we do not lose the added value provided by algorithms. Leaders of tomorrow thus need to be cognizant of these biases and train themselves to be aware of how they react towards the presence of different parties. A first task is therefore to try eliminating the biased preferences that can be consciously identified. The second task is to grow your awareness of biased perceptions and try to recognize where you display such unconscious biases. This second step requires you to put certain decision policies, processes and structures in place to shield you against these unconscious tendencies, preferably starting with having people around you who constantly remind you of other perspectives.

Humble leadership

Leadership that includes and connects all parties is celebrated because of its open attitude to diversity. In addition, it is credited with being able to see strength in difference, while not being afraid to experiment with these diverse approaches. For such inclusive leadership to emerge, leaders are expected to create psychologically safe work climates where prejudice and bias are absent. If trust is present, then differences are more easily accepted, discussed and embraced. As a result, different ways of working will be explored and the likelihood for success will increase. We could even conclude that if prejudice exists, then less opportunities will be created.

Please challenge me!

Of course, creating value for all is not an easy thing to achieve. It requires you, as a leader, to be critical of the assumptions you hold. In a way, you should be your own devil’s advocate. In my classes with executives, I often emphasize that when they launch initiatives and experience no push-back from others, they owe it to themselves to criticize their own initiatives. Many of them are surprised when I say this and wonder why they should criticize their own ideas. If everyone agrees with it, isn’t that the best outcome?

Of course, we all like our ideas to go unchallenged. However, if no one challenges you, it usually means something else. It means there is no trust, or that people do not feel safe to speak up. Or, even worse, that people feel it is a waste of time to challenge you, because you will not listen. If you fail to see this, then it means you are not open minded enough, nor attentive enough, to the social dynamic in your team. Worst of all, it may reflect a lack of humility.

Promoting bottom-up thinking

Social scientists define humility as “letting one’s accomplishments speak for themselves; not seeking the spotlight; [and] not regarding oneself as more special than one is.”199 It is a moral value that motivates people to be open to the opinion of others while at the same time being critical about one’s own assumptions. With such an attitude, you are less self-focused, which helps you to make better choices when a wider range of opportunities presents itself.

In fact, humility is a key component of effective leadership in increasingly dynamic and turbulent environments.200 Under such circumstances, organizations need leaders who act quickly in exploring different perspectives and draw from the wide range of wisdom available. And this is exactly what humble leaders do.

For example, when it comes down to seeking the opinions of others, research has demonstrated that leaders with a humble attitude stimulate bottom-up dynamics in teams and throughout their organization.201 In other words, humble leaders do not shy away from admitting what they do not know. As a result, they are big fans of the bottom-up cycle, where ideas at the lower levels move upwards and influence the organization.

How to develop your humility?

Humble leaders are aware of what they know and what they do not know. This helps them to create a collaborative culture. Humble leaders are able to:

Adopt a broad perspective

People usually like to stick to what they already know and keep acting in routine ways. Our biological make-up does not encourage us to explore other ways of thinking and acting. Instead, most of us develop a mindset that others are likely to think and act like us. Indeed, humans are very good at denying the idea that much diversity in thinking and acting exists out there. Humble leaders acknowledge that people do not always think and act like themselves. They are able to shift their attention away from their own point of view and focus on the ideas, perceptions and views of those around them.

Listen to others

Being aware of your strengths and weaknesses instils the motivation to see and hear how others think and act. Of course, admitting your weaknesses in the first place requires you to be willing and able to make yourself vulnerable. It requires that you tone down the perfect image that we all like to shape for ourselves. Humble leaders are realistic enough to recognise the limitations of their own abilities and, as such, are more willing to turn to others to ask for their input and help. The trick here is to realize that admitting weakness and asking others for help does not communicate a sign of failure, but rather a sign of great character.

Admit their mistakes

All leaders are human, which means they all make mistakes from time to time. When you are willing to share your own missteps, it allows others to connect with you in a deeper and more authentic way. If your habit, however, is to do everything within your power to portray yourself as perfect, then people will actually look at you as inhuman. As a result, you will create distance, not loyalty or commitment. Being humble as a leader is thus a quality that lets others see your humanity which in turn promotes connection.

Summary: The benefits of inclusive leadership

With a new player (i.e. algorithms) entering the organizational setting, an open-minded and collaborative mindset is needed more than ever to ensure that the implementation of technology creates the value that we expect. The emphasis on inclusive thinking and acting is therefore a requirement for any organization where automation is adopted, because it allows for:

Different departments to co-operate

A common problem for most companies is the existence of silos. Many people perceive their job in terms of the targets they need to obtain, and as such do not go beyond their own job requirements. It means that departments only stick to what they need to do. They tick all their own boxes, but rarely the boxes of other departments. The end result is that it is difficult for companies to work in a collaborative way, where all knowledge present in the organization is brought together to help make the best decisions. With algorithms entering the workforce, the risk exists that this silo phenomenon will only become more pervasive.

When it comes to using algorithms, the risks that silos bring are two-fold. First, departments will use algorithms in different ways, meaning no comprehensive point of view will be developed on how the organization as a whole should employ them to serve the purpose of the company. Second, some departments will employ algorithms more than others, thereby creating differences in work attitudes towards automation, which will make the process of digital transformation more difficult.

Integrating teams of data scientists in the daily operations of the company

With the work environment gradually being automated, organizations will increasingly hire more people with an engineering and data-science background. These new hires will have an expert understanding of the new technology and the ability to work with big data. A problem, however, is that those experts usually do not share the same mindset as the people who are not trained in the fields of engineering and data science. Organizations often fail to recognize this difference in mindset and put little effort into ensuring that data scientists are integrated into the organization.

Becoming an automated organization means that all operations will be affected. Teams of data scientists thus need to understand the goals of the finance department, human resource department, sales department and so forth. Likewise, organizations need to prepare all the other departments to be open and collaborative with the team of data scientists. It is only with an open-minded attitude that successful integration and implementation of algorithms within the context of each department can be achieved.202

Promoting transparency in communication and exchange of data

Today there is no longer any doubt that to succeed in the future, organizations will need to have the ability to deal with data and use algorithms. A first step is to ensure that data is captured and stored in user-friendly and accessible ways. A second step involves making this data available to everyone, which implies the democratization of data.

This first step is relatively easy to do, but the second often fails because of a lack of inclusive leadership. Indeed, once the technology is fully implemented, a major problem is usually a lack of collaboration between people, which is necessary for the automation efforts to succeed. A more inclusive work environment makes information more easily accessible and shared. So, a transparency policy with regard to data management requires that individuals, teams and departments communicate with each other and that the organizational leadership facilitates a collaborative mindset.

Empower algorithms in non-biased ways

With an inclusive mindset in place, algorithms will be more easily seen as co-workers. They will be recognized as being part of the same team as you are! To achieve this level of inclusion it is necessary to create a sense of connection with the algorithm rather than a sense of distance. An inclusive work culture helps with this ambition. Inclusive leaders foster this work culture by helping employees to understand the value of the algorithm. They can do this by creating continuous education opportunities to understand advancements in technology.

Be humble, and work on being tech savvy

The presence of algorithms may create discrepancies in technological knowledge between different departments. Leaders therefore need to create a safe and trustworthy climate where people can address their lack of understanding when it comes to new technology. Such a climate can help to build a culture where employees help each other in this area of expertise. In addition, such an enlightened work climate will also help the organization to identify which departments need more training to help them understand the value of algorithms to achieve the overall goals of the company.


179 Davenport, T.H., & Bean, R. (2018). ‘Big Companies Are Embracing Analytics, But Most Still Don’t Have a Data-Driven Culture.’ Harvard Business Review. February 15. Retrieved from: https://hbr.org/2018/02/big-companies-are-embracing-analytics-but-most-still-dont-have-a-data-driven-culture

180 Bass, B.M. (1985). ‘Leadership and Performance Beyond Expectations.’ Free Press, New York.

181 Conger, J.A., & Kanungo, R.N. (1987). ‘Toward a behavioral theory of charismatic leadership in organizational settings.’ Academy of Management Journal, 12, 637–647.

182 Berson, Y., & Avolio, B.J. (2004). ‘Transformational leadership and the dissemination of organizational goals: A case study of a telecommunication firm.’ The Leadership Quarterly, 15(5), 625-646.

183 Awamleh, R., & Gardner, W. L. (1999). ‘Perceptions of leader charisma and effectiveness: The effects of vision content, delivery, and organizational performance.’ The Leadership Quarterly, 10, 345–373.

184 Brown, M. E., Treviño, L. K., & Harrison, D. A. (2005). ‘Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing.’ Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 97, 117–134.

185 Treviño & Nelson, K.A. (2003). ‘Managing business ethics.’ Wiley.

186 Ariely, D. (2009). ‘Predictably irrational: The hidden forces that shape our decisions.’ HarperCollins.

187 Howell, J.M., & Shamir, B. (2005). ‘The role of followers in the charismatic leadership process: Relationships and their consequences.’ Academy of Management Review, 30, 96–112.

188 Steffens, N.K., & Haslam, S.A. (2013). ‘Power through “Us”: Leaders’ use of we-referencing language predicts election victory.’ PLos ONE, 8(10), 1-6.

189 Mayer, R. C., Davis, J. H., & Schoorman, F. D. (1995). ‘An integrative model of organizational trust.’ Academy of Management Review, 20(3), 709–734.

190 Rousseau, D. M., Sitkin, S. B., Burt, R. S., & Camerer, C. (1998). ‘Not so different after all: A cross-discipline view of trust.’ Academy of Management Review, 23, 393-404.

191 Colquitt, J. A., Scott, B. A., & LePine, J. A. (2007). ‘Trust, trustworthiness, and trust propensity: A meta-analytic test of their unique relationships with risk taking and job performance.’ Journal of Applied Psychology, 92, 909–927.

192 De Cremer, D., & Tyler, T. R. (2007). ‘The effects of trust in authority and procedural fairness on cooperation.’ Journal of Applied Psychology, 92, 639–649.

193 Pillutla, M. M., Malhotra D., & Murnighan, J. K. (2003). ‘Attributions of trust and the calculus of reciprocity.’ Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 39(5), 448-455.

194 Mayer, R. C., Davis, J. H., & Schoorman, F. D. (1995). ‘An integrative model of organizational trust.’ Academy of Management Review, 20(3), 709–734.

195 van Knippenberg, D.van Ginkel, W.P. & Homan, A.C. 2013. ‘Diversity mindsets and the performance of diverse teams.’ Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 121(2), 183-193.

196 Boyatzis, R.E., Passarelli, A.M, Koenig, K., Lowe, M., Mathew, B., Stoller, J.K., & Phillips, M. (2012). ‘Examination of the neural substrates activated in memories of experiences with resonant and dissonant leaders.’ The Leadership Quarterly, 23(2), 259-272.

197 Qiu, T., Qualls, W., Bohlmann, J., & Rupp, D.E. (2009). ‘The effect of interactional fairness on the performance of cross-functional product development teams: A multi-level mediated model.’ The Journal of Product Innovation Management, 26(2), 173-187.

198 McKinsey (2018). ‘Skill shift: Automation and the future of the workforce.’ Retrieved from: https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/McKinsey/Featured%20Insights/Future%20of%20Organizations/Skill%20shift%20Automation%20and%20the%20future%20of%20the%20workforce/MGI-Skill-Shift-Automation-and-future-of-the-workforce-May-2018.ashx

199 Ou, A.Y., Waldman, D.A., & Peterson, S.J. (2006). ‘Do humble CEO’s matter? An examination of CEO humility and firm outcomes.’ Journal of Management, 44(3), 1147-1173.

200 Vera, D., & Rodriguez-Lopez, A. (2004). ‘Humility as a source of competitive advantage.’ Organizational Dynamics, 33(4), 393-408.

201 Owens, B.P., Johnson, M.D., & Mitchell, T.R. (2013). ‘Expressed humility in organizations: Implications of performance, teams and leadership.’ Organization Science, 24(5), 1517-1538.

202 McKinsey (September 2019). ‘Catch them if you can: How leaders in data and analytics have pulled ahead.’ Retrieved from: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/mckinsey-analytics/our-insights/catch-them-if-you-can-how-leaders-in-data-and-analytics-have-pulled-ahead

If you find an error or have any questions, please email us at admin@erenow.org. Thank you!