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2017 - 11:10
Power is not what it once was. In the 21st century, power is easy to get, difficult to wield and easy to lose. This is the argument of the renowned political and economic analyst, Moisés Naím, and something shared by the political, business and social leaders who are this week attending the Davos Forum.
Under the slogan Responsive and Responsible Leadership, the 47th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum reveals the importance of leadership when it comes to improving the world, above all bearing in mind that we live in an increasingly polarised society, where new technology and digitalisation are the common denominator and ethics has become the answer to most of the questions.
"We need leaders who take coherent decisions; the short-term, individualist paradigm is over," warns Ceferí Soler, professor of the people management and organisation department at ESADE. In short, we are rethinking the world and rethinking leadership.
Search for authenticity
Who do I really work for? What are my rights and duties? How can I appraise the impact of my day-to-day? What truly matters to me? Who benefits from my business and who should benefit? These are some of the questions that future leaders will have to ask, according to the World Economic Forum.
"We have always thought of leaders devoted to society, but if he or she does not first analyse their personal I, they will always want to please others and achieve maximum visibility," argues Soler. "The most important thing is to have self-knowledge, because if not, when they tell you how great you are, you will believe it," he adds. In other words, responsive and responsible leadership is aware.
Know how
Before Uber, drones, iPhones, Instagram or even the ninth planet existed, capital and work were the factors determining a country's wealth. However, according to Soler, in the post-capitalist society what is important is knowledge, know how. "Not the cheap labour in Africa, Asia and Central America, not the timetables of the Japanese who become work addicts, not gold; what today makes a nation rich is when leaders can transmit know how, which is why talent is so important."
In a context in which complexity and technology increases every year, producing a billion t-shirts is no longer enough. "We are going from production in volume to the production of added value," concludes the Esade professor.
A world of micropowers
Moisés Naím believes that power has undergone a mutation: "Leaders seem powerful but they have a large number of 'micropowers' around them." From small and new tech companies that outdo large multinationals, to activists in favour of democracy or small minority parties, all of them have become new players with the capacity for leadership.
According to the Venezuelan writer, author of a dozen books on international economy and politics and protagonist of the last Cornellà Creació Fòrum, Uber and Airbnb are two examples of micropower "that do not play by the established rules and that limit the power of large companies and institutions."
The largest or the strongest are no longer calling the shots, power and influence increasingly depends less on size, geography, history or tradition. The time of the ethical and aware leader has come.
Under the slogan Responsive and Responsible Leadership, the 47th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum reveals the importance of leadership when it comes to improving the world, above all bearing in mind that we live in an increasingly polarised society, where new technology and digitalisation are the common denominator and ethics has become the answer to most of the questions.
"We need leaders who take coherent decisions; the short-term, individualist paradigm is over," warns Ceferí Soler, professor of the people management and organisation department at ESADE. In short, we are rethinking the world and rethinking leadership.
Search for authenticity
Who do I really work for? What are my rights and duties? How can I appraise the impact of my day-to-day? What truly matters to me? Who benefits from my business and who should benefit? These are some of the questions that future leaders will have to ask, according to the World Economic Forum.
"We have always thought of leaders devoted to society, but if he or she does not first analyse their personal I, they will always want to please others and achieve maximum visibility," argues Soler. "The most important thing is to have self-knowledge, because if not, when they tell you how great you are, you will believe it," he adds. In other words, responsive and responsible leadership is aware.
Know how
Before Uber, drones, iPhones, Instagram or even the ninth planet existed, capital and work were the factors determining a country's wealth. However, according to Soler, in the post-capitalist society what is important is knowledge, know how. "Not the cheap labour in Africa, Asia and Central America, not the timetables of the Japanese who become work addicts, not gold; what today makes a nation rich is when leaders can transmit know how, which is why talent is so important."
In a context in which complexity and technology increases every year, producing a billion t-shirts is no longer enough. "We are going from production in volume to the production of added value," concludes the Esade professor.
A world of micropowers
Moisés Naím believes that power has undergone a mutation: "Leaders seem powerful but they have a large number of 'micropowers' around them." From small and new tech companies that outdo large multinationals, to activists in favour of democracy or small minority parties, all of them have become new players with the capacity for leadership.
According to the Venezuelan writer, author of a dozen books on international economy and politics and protagonist of the last Cornellà Creació Fòrum, Uber and Airbnb are two examples of micropower "that do not play by the established rules and that limit the power of large companies and institutions."
The largest or the strongest are no longer calling the shots, power and influence increasingly depends less on size, geography, history or tradition. The time of the ethical and aware leader has come.