10 Leadership Virtues for Disruptive Times

COVID-19’s disruption of work and employees’ values calls for a new type of leader: the “Coach Leader.”

The COVID-19 pandemic caused two main disruptions: a disruption in work environments and a disruption in employees’ values. Work environments changed from in-person offices with strict hours to at-home offices with flexible hours. Employees’ values changed from a narrow focus on career to a wider focus on work-life balance and quality of life. Although many employees found working from home challenging at first, most have come to prefer it. A 2021 PWC survey found over half of employees want at least three days a week of remote work. But the pandemic crisis and remote work have placed special stresses on employees.

Remote work, flexible hours and quality of life concerns require a new style of leadership: the Coach Leader. The Coach Leader functions more like a sports coach than a traditional office manager. The traditional manager acts as a superior who delegates tasks by telling subordinates what to do, but the Coach Leader acts as a guide who co-creates game plans by asking team members what they think. Traditional managers supervise people...