Guiding the Tide

In a world increasingly driven by artificial intelligence, leadership needs to move beyond the "e;agile"e; approach that dominated organizational leadership practices at the end of the 20th century. What is required now for successful leaders is a skillful juxtaposition of proactivity and humility, which we call "e;guiding the tide."e; Successful leaders of today must demonstrate personal agency in order to guide the tide of events around them rather than have the tide of events sweep them along. The "e;tide,"e; like a river within an ocean akin to a gulf stream, is a unique, ever-changing stream of business systems, technology, consumers, and competitors. This book uses storytelling, examples, and clear, everyday language to blend leading-edge psychological research and leadership practices with the authors' own work in coaching, assessing, and developing leaders for three decades around the world. The book takes the reader on a journey through three major learnings: First, the authors describe the nature of the tide and the demands on leaders to move beyond a reactionary, agile approach toward the forward-leaning, active stance of personal agency. Second, they describe three critical practices to successfully lead with agency and guide the tide: Honest Engagement - the practice of dealing with others from a place of openness, honesty, and a willingness to be vulnerable. Addressing Reality - the practice of seeing the world as it is rather than as we wish it to be, the ability to separate fact from fiction and data from desire. Adaptive Impact - the practice of driving the organization, team, and oneself forward in a way that creates results-beyond- results, that is, delivering goals while building followership, sustainability and "e;Humanocity"e; - the integration of human creativity and judgment with the efficiency of digital automation. Third, they offer leaders a practical path to achieving the personal agency to successfully guide their organization through the tide that shapes their world.