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Dec 18, 2024 Leslie Beale, PCC, JD

Four Key Trends That Are Shaping 2025’s Leadership Landscape

It’s that special time of year. Quarter 4 of 2024 is winding down and local restaurant reservations are ramping up as we celebrate the season with our co-workers and teams. In virtual and in-person meetings across the land, the oft-heard phrase is uttered: “We’ll follow up with that in January.”  

The great news is that just about everyone reflects this happily distracted state of mind. The not-so-great news is that the new year will be here before we know it, and we may not be prepared to address the changes that threaten the successful futures of our organizations.  

Our team at Profusion Strategies has identified four disturbing workplace trends that are not only prevalent in today’s business climate, but will likely continue into 2025 and beyond: 

  • Ever-rising talent and skills gaps 

  • Sustained uncertainty and anxiety among employees 

  • Challenges of a multi-generational workforce 

  • The necessity of human-centric leadership  

According to current research, these shifts—which are taking place across the globe—are moving from the exception to the norm. Where does your organization shine in dealing with them? And where does it struggle? 

Trend 1: Continued Gaps in Worker Supply and Skillset in the Face of Disruptions

In the coming years, up to 44%—nearly half—of America’s workforce will need to be reskilled due to having their jobs disrupted by technological advances. And while other disruptions are more temporary such as industry and geographically specific layoffs, overall we remain in an environment where there are more jobs than workers, with 8 million jobs in the U.S. and only 6.8 million people to fill them.  

The situation is growing dire as more Baby Boomers reach retirement age. Coined the “Silver Tsunami”, 20% of the U.S. population is expected to be 65 or older by 2030. This means that organizations must continue their focus on locating top talent, then retaining them. It also means businesses need to think more strategically about workforce planning, development, and, perhaps most crucially, succession planning for retiring workers. 

Trend 2: Looming Anxiety and Uncertainty

The unrelenting pace of change in the modern workplace continues to stretch our abilities as humans to adapt. With so many employees close to the breaking point, we see the fallout in rising anxiety, reduced productivity, and an overall degradation in well-being.  

There are no signs that this situation will improve, and, in fact, innovations like AI and the workplace shifts they drive may make stability even more tenuous. Managers within organizations must do what they can to build resilience among their teams, helping them look at change as an exciting opportunity rather than a frightening unknown. Leaders will be expected to deal with these challenges, even though the impacts may be falling disproportionately on their own shoulders. 

Trend 3: Continued Blending of Multiple Generations in the Workforce

Multiple generations will continue to work together as Gen Z keeps entering the workforce. Additionally, due to financial necessity and changing attitudes about retirement and life purpose, a new demographic of employees 75 and older will make up the fastest-growing pool of employees for the next five years.  

These trends mean that leaders must identify and address varying needs for different age groups. Organizations should proactively assess the potential for miscommunication, misunderstanding, and other dynamics that arise from a variety of age-related situations such as younger workers leading older ones. A sharp focus on integrating the perspectives of all generations during routine communications, trainings, and other workplace activities will no longer be the exception, but the rule. 

Trend 4: Embracing Human-Centric Leadership

Metrics related to loneliness, well-being, and engagement continue to show a workforce that is under pressure. Retaining top employees, adapting to workers’ needs for flexibility, and attracting non-traditional talent will cause a shift in how managers conduct business, making a human-centric approach a necessity for organizations. 

Further exacerbating the problem is technology, which offers the opportunity to automate many administerial and management tasks of leadership. Some leaders will embrace this change, welcoming the chance to spend more time developing and coaching their teams. Others will struggle with the more challenging skills of leading and will need critical support in this area to remain competitive. This move will confront what organizations and leaders see as possible and require them to drop the one-size-fits-all approach to meeting employee needs. 

Goodbye to 2024; Hello to the Modern Workplace

Today’s workplace looks, feels, and behaves much differently than when many of us entered it. The answer to these changes lies in accepting them as permanent rather than temporary, and embracing exceptional leadership as a way of doing business—expected of all employees—rather than a job title reserved for a select few. 

Before you fire up the crock pots for your office Christmas shindig, schedule time to identify your own organization’s strengths and weaknesses when it comes to these emerging trends. Do your leaders need support in 2025? We can help. Schedule a Discovery Call today.

Published by Leslie Beale, PCC, JD December 18, 2024
Leslie Beale, PCC, JD
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