“Society is putting leaders within organizations on the frontlines of the most challenging social and environmental issues of our time.” -Rum

Note. This article based on LRI’s 2022 study “Leadership voices on societal impact: opportunities facing leaders and organizations.” Scroll down to request a copy.

There has been a seismic shift in the expectations we have of leaders and organizations. Within the last five years, the workplace has become one of the main stages for environmental, social, and governance-related issues to be raised up, codified, and addressed within our society. If you couple this shift with other factors, such as the recent global pandemic and increasingly caustic politics, society is putting leaders within organizations on the frontlines of the most challenging social and environmental issues of our time.

In a recent qualitative research study conducted by our Research Services Team (RST) with a panel of 24 executives and leadership luminaries from across the globe, participants indicated that there has been a marked shift in organizations to being more people-centered. There have been a few significant factors driving this shift (Covid-19, social justice issues, caustic politics, etc.), and the result has been that the needs of employees are given much more weight within organizations than they have before.

Employees now have a greater voice in how their organizations are choosing to make societal impact, both locally and globally, and organizations are now striving to find ways for employees to embed themselves in the societal impact initiatives being undertaken. Finally, the mental health of employees is no longer a taboo subject, and mental health and well-being of employees has become a critical priority of organizations and leaders.

Restorative leaders take a more “people-centered” approach by examining the needs and values of those being led and connecting it to their work. In particular, restorative leaders focus on infusing purpose and meaning in the work of others, and creating opportunities for people to opt into the work they are doing. The result is a stronger emotional investment by employees in their work and in their organization, which ultimately results in higher performance and retention of top talent.

Take Action!

Three actions you can take:

1. Reflect on how your own leadership role has evolved in the last couple of years? Has your role expanded its scope, and if so, in what ways?
2. Request a copy of “Leadership Voices on Societal Impact: Opportunities and challenges facing leaders and organizations” by clicking here.
3. Assess your restorative leadership style by taking the Restore® assessment at www.credible-leader.shop.

The current research was based on an interview-based, qualitative study involving approximately twenty-four leaders working in a variety of roles across a diverse set of organizations, including global, local, for-profit, not-for-profit, and advisory organizations across an assortment of industries. Leaders were interviewed over Zoom using standardized scripts, though because of the exploratory nature of the study, interviews often focused on a couple of key questions (or even went off-script) to explore areas of interest and unique insights.

This research was made possible through financial support from AACSB. A special thank you to Julia Firestone for her work in supporting this research.

This research supports the Restore® Initiative, LRI’s campaign to encourage you to take a critical and constructive look at your own engagement (your Engage® Battery), and to learn about restorative leadership behaviors that help to recharge your own and others’ engagement (your Restore® Battery). For more information, email credible-leader@lri.com or click on www.credible-leader.com.