GenFlux Leadership

December 26, 2012 Leave a comment

IISC would like to share our Top 5 most influential post of 2012! Join us until the New Years Eve when we reveal our number 1 blog post!

Fast Company’s has a recent cover story on the new and chaotic frontier of business.

 Despite recession, currency crises, and tremors of financial instability, the pace of disruption is roaring ahead. The frictionless spread of information and the expansion of personal, corporate, and global networks have plenty of room to run. And here’s the conundrum: When businesspeople search for the right forecast–the road map and model that will define the next era–no credible long-term picture emerges. There is one certainty, however. The next decade or two will be defined more by fluidity than by any new, settled paradigm; if there is a pattern to all this, it is that there is no pattern. The most valuable insight is that we are, in a critical sense, in a time of chaos.

 And while I do think that there are clearly observable patterns that define the emergent paradigm, I do appreciate the articles willingness to step into chaos.  I have long believed that those of us who work for justice may actually find ourselves at a strategic advantage.  The current shift is so radical that we can actually look forward to a new world order – the question is:  who will define it?

The article points to the sort of individual who can thrive in this climate:

To thrive in this climate requires a whole new approach… some people will thrive. They are the members of Generation Flux. This is less a demographic designation than a psychographic one: What defines GenFlux is a mind-set that embraces instability, that tolerates–and even enjoys–recalibrating careers, business models, and assumptions. Not everyone will join Generation Flux, but to be successful, businesses and individuals will have to work at it. This is no simple task. The vast bulk of our institutions–educational, corporate, political–are not built for flux. Few traditional career tactics train us for an era where the most important skill is the ability to acquire new skills.

And this is what good leadership development will look like.  We must develop the trainings and processes that prepare change agents to define what’s next.

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