‘Somewhat ineffective’: Leaders stumble amid distributed work

It comes at a time when leadership burnout is also exploding due to growing demands from the fast-changing pace of work, such as navigating the integration of AI in workplaces.

“Despite a continuous flow of new ideas and strategies with the promise of improving leadership effectiveness, we face a persistent leadership crisis. Something is clearly wrong,” the report said.

Addressing leadership’s struggle

Rob Cross, SVP of Research at i4cp and professor at Babson College, said their findings point out the changes in what is needed to be an effective leader.

“Leadership effectiveness is no longer about charisma or a one-size-fits-all model. It’s contextual, specific, and increasingly networked,” Cross said in a statement. “Our research shows that targeted changes—not sweeping programmes—can dramatically increase leadership effectiveness and team performance.”

The report said leadership effectiveness is distinguished by six capabilities, including culture, structure, talent practices, wellbeing, boundary management, and technology.