Happy New Year!
These first days of January have been quite rainy in our part of the world, but I am sticking to my personal new-year-resolution: to spend more walking time outside, no matter the weather. I am a stubbornly indoor person, but I have decided to stop making excuses and use the little private forest that surrounds our Grooa Academy Center; even if we are not open for clients yet, I can at least walk the woods by myself. I already notice that I am less stressed and sleep longer.
My professional new-year-resolution seems a lot easier: I am simplifying my priorities. I want to focus on advocating and supporting equality, which in business terms means more focus on the essential Skills and Strategies related to Diversity & Inclusion.
My choice reflects two emerging mega-trends in the field of leadership:
1. Accountable Collaborative Leadership must replace the Charismatic Ego-Cult Leadership of the past. The 2020 Pandemic has added stress, fear and uncertainty to the already increasing complexity of recent years, which resulted in divisiveness and intolerance in both the political and business arenas. A challenged global economy increases inequality and hinders open collaboration. Happily, most people are now demanding a shift towards more openness, respect and tolerance. Many believe that we will only be able to resume a healthy global economy – and peace – by re-learning how to collaborate fairly and accountably.
2. Increased Digitalisation means more space and responsibility for Humans and Social Skills. The 2020 Pandemic has also accelerated the process of digitalisation. Most routine and automatic jobs are taken over by technology, leaving a need for stressing the social – interpersonal – human side of working together. We no longer need the smart achievers who know all the answers, now that technology gets us better and faster objective answers. We need people able to make ethical subjective decisions together. And that is no easy task.
So here is our GROOA focus for 2021:
In order to fully benefit from the human richness that comes from Diversity of Ideas, we must design and implement Inclusive strategies and we must train everyone in the essential skills of Interdependent Leadership: Assertive Transparency, Humble Curiosity and Courageous Dialogue.
In line with this scope, in addition to the current Clients Bespoke Programs, we will soon announce:
a major initiative for Top Executive and Board Women,
a string of highly effective Courageous and Impactful Conversations Training Programs
and the extended Mindful Leadership Programme.
Each of these 3 main initiatives will hopefully culminate in an “in-person” event during the second half of 2021, when we expect to reopen our Academy Center.
Meanwhile, I want to offer you the opportunity to explore a revolutionary new type of 360 assessment, based on neuroscience, the PRISM Brain Mapping, that allows a personal profile according to personal preferences and that can be a very useful pre-work (and post-work for measure), whenever you want to implement a personal coaching, team building/facilitation or leadership development programme.
Check out our new video, which explains the scientific basis of the PRISM Brain Mapping Assessment and let me know if you wish to learn more about its applicability.
Take care and continue to courageously
Lead with a Smile!
Laura Lozza
Managing Partner, Grooa AS
Registered company address: Manglerudveien 93, 0678 Oslo (Norway)
Visiting address: Grooa Inspiria Learning Center, Den Hiek 33, 5421XG Gemert (Netherlands)