What Qualities Should We Look For in Leaders of the Future?
As we continue to explore the role mission-based cultural attractions play in our communities and what that should look like as we move into the future, we discussed leadership as the third topic in our series.
Host Kathayoon Khalil, PhD and panelists Stephanie Arne of Great Plains Zoo and the Butterfly House and Aquarium; Justin Birkhoff of Global Center for Species Survival at Indianapolis Zoo; Misha Body, Zoo and Aquarium Leader and MIAZS (Minorities in Aquarium and Zoo Sciences) Board Member; Jeffrey Flocken of the Humane Society International and Emerging Wildlife Conservation Leaders; Amy Rutherford of Birmingham Zoo; and T’Noya Thompson, PhD Student and of Wild Spark Consulting, along with our audience, provided insights to these questions exploring leaders of the future:
In what capacity do you think about leadership? Where do you spend the most time thinking about the concept of leadership?
- I think about leadership most when I fail, when I think I responded in the right way as a leader, but it doesn’t come out the right way or I didn’t apply what I learned the way I wanted to. Then I review, revisit, discuss with my inspirational leaders, then try to do better.
- There are so many different types of leaders. I try to be aware, and when I see a trait that I want to emulate, then I think about leadership.
- You can be a leader at all levels. It’s about being supportive of each other no matter where you are in the organizational chart.
- When I’m meeting with my team, I think “What kind of leader do they need me to be?” How can I reinforce their needs and continue to empower them to step into their leadership in ways that are authentic for them?
- I have a reminder on my desk: “Am I trying to be right? Or am I trying to do better?”
- Lead as your team needs – sometimes you need to be vocal and facilitating, sometimes you need to sit back and encourage other people to speak up.
- Modeling behaviors of those you inspire or who share same vision, and also recognizing behaviors you don’t want to model.
- There is a leader/follower dynamic. You can’t be a leader without also being a follower. Leaders are also followers.
What are the qualities of a phenomenal leader? What do you emulate from that example?
- Be authentic, empathetic, vulnerable, and compassionate.
- Recognize vulnerability as a strength to recognize your own areas of growth and depend on others to compliment those shortcomings.
- Actively talking about those strengths and shortcomings takes away the “scary” of leadership and shows emerging leaders that you don’t have to be perfect at everything or have all the answers. It leans more into the importance of process and continued learning and growth.
- Be self-aware. Know your strengths and shortcomings and find team members to complement your skills (or lack of skills) so you can focus on those that are intrinsically your strongest.
- Integrity, honesty, and reliability. We need to hold leaders accountable.
- Who’s celebrating you when you’re not in the room?
- Showing up and being a human being. Not trying to cover up that you have child/pet responsibilities, mental health issues, etc. Acknowledging and striving for a personal/work life balance and being supportive of your staff. This is an emerging quality that we’re applauding.
- A leader who’s there not just for the professional side but also the human side and vice versa. Leaders are followers too! Embrace self-awareness and adaptability based on each situation – this is critical and powerful!
- Normalize talking about mental health. It’s okay to not be okay.
- An excellent book is “Upside Down Leadership” by Don Janssen, retired Director of Animal Health at San Diego Zoo. He lived through some challenging times.
- While we’re seeing this quality more now, the workplace may not remain as vulnerable as it is now post-Covid. The pendulum may swing back to a more locked down, buttoned down workforce.
- Create a space of trust for vulnerability but don’t require it from your staff. Lead with empathy and compassion.
- “The 5 Dysfunctions of a Team” book lists trust, conflict, commitment, accountability, and results. If there’s a baseline of trust, these all become easier. Leaders who extend trust and have your back will support you.
- Leaders need to be clear and transparent about their expectations, and amenable to negotiations (within reason) on those expectations with their staff.
What are elements of leadership that no longer serve us?
- Entitlement – a leader who’s in their position because of length of tenure, they know the right person, etc.
- Robotic leaders vs. compassionate leaders.
- Inflexible leaders aren’t evolving, can’t shift styles based on situation.
- Secrecy. Staff now want to understand why certain things are happening, even if not all the details can be shared. This improves trust.
- Unrealistic expectations on someone else’s time. Ex: Pay 40 hours/week but expect 50 hours of work.
- Continued ties to tenure, celebrating someone staying in a role for a long time.
- If the leader hasn’t evolved as their organization/role evolves, then it’s time to leave with grace and transition to a new role.
- Recognize that a leader doesn’t have to stay in one job forever; that can make an organization stagnant.
- Celebrate those who leave too! And support their transition to new opportunities within an existing organization or outside the organization. It’s okay to transition to make a bigger impact in a different organization.
- Tenure and retention are not the only measures of success.
- These leaders may be preventing other more flexible leaders from moving up in their careers and making a greater impact on an organization.
- Are we hurting our teams by not encouraging them to explore more broadly earlier in their careers?
What are the qualities you need in future leaders?
- The ability to inspire. The workforce is very different now vs. 10 years ago.
- How to retain the best talent. Have a career trajectory to help them grow. There’s not the same loyalty in the field as there was in the past so leaders need to inspire, embrace being part of the organization.
- Change the perception and recognize that it’s okay to leave the field and move outside zoos and aquariums to grow, learn, and expand your skills.
- It’s important to have a network to discuss career transition and next steps.
- Adaptability to the changing needs of your staff, community, and yourself.
- Be the best leader for the situation and know when you are not.
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