{"id":8017,"date":"2020-06-02T06:38:08","date_gmt":"2020-06-02T06:38:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/?p=8017"},"modified":"2023-12-11T07:47:22","modified_gmt":"2023-12-11T07:47:22","slug":"why-soft-leadership-skills-will-rise-to-the-top-during-times-of-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/future-of-work\/why-soft-leadership-skills-will-rise-to-the-top-during-times-of-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Soft Leadership Skills Will Rise to the Top During Times of Crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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At a time when everyone in the world is searching for the best way to come out of this current economic situation in one piece, perhaps we should consider not WHAT to do, but HOW we do it. A recent\u00a0Fast Company<\/a>\u00a0article boldly stated, \u201cCompanies often prioritize real estate cost savings above employee well-being. That doesn\u2019t work now, and it never worked well.\u201d DeLinda Forsythe, CEO and Founder of\u00a0ICE<\/a>\u00a0(Innovative Commercial Environments), a San Diego furniture dealership that has been on the\u00a0Inc.\u00a0<\/em>500 list since 2013, agrees.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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When asked what is needed to succeed during these unchartered times her answer was clear: \u201cThe leadership skills most important right now are empathy<\/a>, vulnerability, and courage.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ThinkLab\u00a0research<\/a>\u00a0indicates that 60 percent of West Coast survey respondents’ (comprised of both A&D and manufacturers\/dealers) bid activity has slowed or stopped, and 46 percent of respondents have taken some kind of employment actions (be it layoffs, furloughs, pay cuts, or a combination of all these actions). Yet, as of the time of this article, ICE has not been required to reduce staff to lower costs, even though Forsythe admits to dramatic reductions in sales related to the downturn.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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In a recent interview with Forsythe, she shares how her company deploys the skills listed above to weather the storm with the intent of emerging stronger than ever. And her advice for other leaders in the interiors industry gives us hope for a brighter future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Embrace the entrepreneurial spirit.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forsythe was the first to admit that this mindset doesn\u2019t come free. Keeping on staff during a downturn requires her team to sharpen their pencils and find opportunities to cut costs in other areas of business. And for Forsythe, this is a team effort where every member at ICE must equally contribute to lowering costs.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Since Forsythe likens managing employees to raising children, she feels passionately about modeling generational leadership and empowering her team to vocalize their own opinions with a sense of accountability. \u201cEntitlement,\u201d she shares, \u201cshould never hold a negative connotation. I believe employees should be entitled to their own opinion and their actions should follow suit. As a Boomer, so many people tell me how we had it so hard and these Millennials are so entitled. In my head, I\u2019m thinking, \u2018Yes, that is great information, but it\u2019s not relevant. It doesn\u2019t help us move the needle forward.\u2019 We need an employee force, that, regardless of age, is willing to speak their mind, and share insights for a collective brainstorm of ideas. When it comes to cutting costs, this same methodology rings true\u2014everyone\u2019s voice matters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forsythe believes this entrepreneurial mindset is what\u2019s helping her company cut costs during these difficult times. She adds, \u201cThis is our opportunity to live the value that everyone matters, because we all are responsible for each other’s employment. That means less mistakes in design. Going out there and getting more projects. Project management catching mistakes earlier in the process and making sure we don\u2019t have\u00a0any<\/em>\u00a0losses. If we have reduced sales, we can\u2019t have reduced profitability. And everyone on my team is responsible for that common goal.\u201d<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Recognize the value of emotional intelligence.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forsythe shares, \u201cIf there is one thing that I\u2019m seeing as a result of COVID, it is that the downturn is helping us reframe the definition for success. And Millennials, as they tend to young children at home\u2014most without childcare, while homeschooling, are leading the charge. They aren\u2019t looking at Boomers to help define what success means. They\u2019re finding their own unique way of achieving work-life balance in an environment arguably more challenging than ever experienced by their older counterparts. And as a result, they are reframing the concept of work-life balance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s where Forsythe suggests that emotional intelligence comes into play. \u201cWe have always stressed intellectual intelligence, but to me, emotional intelligence is perhaps the most relevant leadership skill we have. COVID brought to light true leadership traits in our employee base, by showing who can excel during these emotionally challenging times. I give so much credit to our Millennial workforce who are proving day in and day out that they aren\u2019t the unmotivated, undervalued employees so many people view them as. They are embracing these new challenges with grace and enthusiasm, and leading a charge for the next generation of leadership to oversee with empathy and compassion.\u201d<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Live out the principles of conscious capitalism.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Forsythe believes in the concept of conscious capitalism, which states that the authentic, truest purpose of business is to elevate humanity and create value for the benefit of everyone. She attributes her application of this principle to ICE\u2019s success. As she puts it, \u201cMany inaccurately believe that capitalism is based on greed and the exploitation of consumers, workers, society and the environment for the goal of maximizing profits, often at the expense of others; someone must lose to allow someone to win. This perception is based on a false narrative that has kidnapped the true character of capitalism as envisioned by our Founding Fathers. In reality capitalism is based on cooperation and voluntary exchange. To a certain degree competition keeps everyone honest and in check with a mandated focus on the customer to provide the best value. Additionally, since employees have more options than ever to work where they want, it forces management to provide higher wages, benefits, and a safe workplace.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She shares her favorite quote from the book \u201cConscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business\u201d\u00a0<\/em>by John Mackey and Rajendra Sisodia both as a testament to her company\u2019s philosophy on doing business, but perhaps also for a clear signal of where successful businesses will stand after we emerge from our current economic un-pause: \u201cConscious leaders\u2026find great joy and beauty in their work, and in the opportunity to serve, lead, and help shape a better future. Since they are living their calling, they are authentic individuals who are eager to share their passion with others. They have an orientation toward servant leadership, high integrity, and a great capacity for love and care.\u201d<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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For research on the interiors industry\u2019s impact during this difficult time, take this\u00a0survey<\/a>\u00a0from ThinkLab. We also invite you to explore ThinkLab resources for\u00a0moving forward<\/a>\u00a0after we un-pause.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At a time when everyone in the world is searching for the best way to come out of this current economic situation in one piece, perhaps we should consider not WHAT to do, but HOW we do it. The leadership skills most important right now are empathy, vulnerability, and courage. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":817,"featured_media":8018,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[182],"tags":[234,235,232,233],"ppma_author":[3658],"class_list":["post-8017","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-future-of-work","tag-emotional-intelligence","tag-entrepreneurial","tag-leadership-skills","tag-soft-skills"],"authors":[{"term_id":3658,"user_id":817,"is_guest":0,"slug":"amanda-schneider","display_name":"Amanda Schneider","avatar_url":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Amanda-Schneider-150x150.jpg","user_url":"https:\/\/thinklab.design\/","last_name":"Schneider","first_name":"Amanda","job_title":"","description":"Amanda Schneider, a researcher, writer, and consultant, is President at ThinkLab, the new research division of Interior Design Media (SANDOW). She has been an industry blogger for many years, previously for the Huffington Post and now for Interior Design Media, Metropolis (a SANDOW publication), and other various industry publications."}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/817"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8017"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34795,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8017\/revisions\/34795"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8017"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=8017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}