What the Business Demands from Its Leaders This Year

In today’s episode, Bob ’n Joyce take on a question many organizations avoid—but can’t afford to ignore: What does the business actually need from its leaders right now?

Rather than defaulting to generic competency models or last year’s leadership playbook, Joyce pulls from her flip-chart archives—capturing real-world leadership “must-haves” identified by two distinct groups: the C-suite and Operations VPs working in the trenches.
What emerges is a fascinating contrast between strategic expectations and operational realities—from leading large-scale change and building long-term capacity, to battle-hardened confidence, simplicity of mindset, and spending more time in the field than the office.

Bob ’n Joyce then force-rank the top three leadership attributes from each group and invite you to do the same. Why? Because leadership development without context is just activity—not impact.

Given the challenges your organization faces this year, this episode helps you make a conscious, strategic choice about where to focus leadership development so it serves the business—not just the curriculum.

Come on in.
Grab a snack.
Welcome.

Footnote: Leadership Attributes Identified by Each Group
C-suite Leadership “Must-Haves”
• Proven track record
• Builds capacity
• High energy endurance
• Vision for strategy
• Inspires
• Compassionate
• Courageous
• Builds productive relationships
• Leads large change
• Keeps the long-term good of the company in mind

Operations VP Leadership “Must-Haves”
• Passionate and curious
• Battle-hardened confidence
• Team smarts (collaborative)
• Simple mindset (ultimate sophistication)
• Fearlessness (no comfort in comfort)
• Preparation and patience
• Time management
• Smart interviewing
• More time out of the office than in
• The art of running meetings