Dusseldorf The pyramid as a symbol of a career in the company is crumbling. New Work grinds hierarchies and changes the definition of professional success. “Influence instead of advancement” will be the maxim in the future, says Bernd Slaghuis.
Together with André Häusling, a specialist in agile personnel management, the career coach has put together for Handelsblatt what will be important in the agile working environment in the future.
In the future, the person who bears responsibility for most employees and for the largest budget will no longer automatically be the most respected. Those who want to be among the leaders in a network organization should rather internalize this formula, advises Häusling: “Teamwork instead of lone warfare, transparency instead of knowledge of authority, personal responsibility instead of command.”
Big company car, corner office and boss parking lot were yesterday. Häusling: “In the future, our own importance in the company will result from the group of people who are looking for an exchange with me as a competent contact person or who want me on their team.” The more important their topics for the company and the higher their personal reputation, the more important radiate that on your own reputation. So personality beats position.
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However, Häusling warns against a fallacy: the departure from the formal hierarchy does not mean equalization. In future, the rank of an employee will rather be determined by their value proposition based on their skills and personality traits. And they could well be different.
Expertise less important than professional skills
Even in the new world of work, there are always three main areas of competence: collaboration and leadership skills and specialist know-how. An employee should cover all three fields. But: The first two competencies mentioned, the so-called professional skills, will in future be more important than specialist knowledge. Slaghuis: “Because specialist knowledge quickly becomes outdated, employers look for employees with the right attitude. Pioneering spirit paired with entrepreneurial thinking give candidates plus points. “
Trying out, improving, learning: the more complex and dynamic the environment, the less it is possible to build on existing knowledge. Slaghuis: “Show yourself adaptable, learn quickly and apply what you have learned consistently.”
The New Work environment is about constant development. This not only applies to products, but especially to employees. Slaghuis advises: “First, make yourself aware of your strengths and then systematically develop your skills.”
Whether the profession is organizational development or programming – Basis means: My range is limited to my team. Master means: I am recognized as an expert in the industry. Slaghuis: “If you want to make a career, you should focus on innovative topics, make them visible and help shape developments.”
Sharing knowledge takes precedence over self-marketing
In New Work organizations, those who give constructive feedback and willingly share their knowledge score points. But be careful: It’s not about classic self-marketing that is supposed to impress others. Häusling: “Your audience wants to learn from you. So describe the ideas behind your successes, but also your misconceptions or what caused you to fail. “
It is also becoming increasingly important to be able to appropriately address members of different spheres, from production to investors, because they can suddenly become interlocutors in agile structures. Häusling: “Practice that as soon as possible.”
Many will judge their own performance in the future
Performance is also assessed in a New Work organization, but the assessment is no longer the responsibility of a single superior, but also team colleagues or cooperation partners. Instead of putting yourself in the limelight in front of the boss, in future it will be important to act competently on groups. There are special opportunities when it comes to moderating team processes, specifically resolving conflicts. Slaghuis: “By taking responsibility for more than just yourself, you demonstrate leadership quality.”
Asking questions instead of making announcements
Häusling advises that where the tasks and power of the classic manager are divided between two, sometimes even more, people, one should consider whether one is more attracted by specialist or personnel responsibility. Anyone who has in mind to be elected leader of a team should realize that this is more and more a “serving” function, for which the following applies: “Questions instead of announcements”: Inquire about how employees want to be supported in order to achieve their best performance to be able to.
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In management roles, those who not only ensure transparency about work status and business figures, but also know how to offer orientation and promote cohesion in unpredictable times, but also ensure that the individual and the team develop further in continuous feedback loops, stand out positively.
Use the renovation phase
The phase in which a company is transforming towards New Work offers many opportunities to position yourself as a committed doer or a sought-after specialist. Whether in a team that is thinking about efficient self-organization or in a group that discusses questions of remuneration – fresh ideas are in demand everywhere. Anyone who gets involved here increases awareness and influence immensely.
Slaghuis therefore recommends not only looking at collaboration in innovative projects from a technical point of view, but also considering: Which new roles or changed tasks can result for you personally? Slaghuis: “Anyone who sees change not as a danger, but as an opportunity for development, scores. “
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