Digital Leaders - The Next Big Transformation!
 
Digital Technology is transforming every sphere of human lives- politics, businesses, economies and society as a whole. It has not only broken down the old, familiar models of organizations, but has also created a broad set of new challenges. One of the crucial ones being how to be a leader in digital age!
Coming years will see the rise of digital leaders or leaders of the future. Leaders across the globe have already embraced digital revolution, recognising the power of game-changing technology.
Digital Age, also referred to as knowledge society or networked society, is marked by significant structural changes that are transforming leadership styles-
    -Fast-paced technological changes
    -Rapid dissemination of information as a result of globalisation
    -Transition from physical attributes towards knowledge
    -More dispersed, less hierarchical structure of organizations.

How can leaders keep pace with the digital age?

Conventional leadership skills have not been displaced in the digital age, instead now they co-exist with the new ones.

1- Digital leadership requires that the leaders keep pace with the ongoing global revolution and contribute towards transition to knowledge society. Digital leaders must understand technology, not merely as an enabler but also for its power to usher revolutionary changes.

2- Digital leaders must be agile, open and driven by a genuine hunger for knowledge. This does not mean that the leaders have to be coding experts or should have graduated from machine learning or cloud or data analytics but it is important that they understand the impact of breakthrough technologies.

3- Leaders must possess the ability to identify technological trends across different domains, such as big data, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, automation, and robotics. Next, they must know how to optimally utilize these technologies in the business processes.

4- Leaders of the future must recognise that in a knowledge society, what we do not know is as important as what we do know. Leaders must, therefore, know how to acquire missing knowledge and how and where to put it to use. Digital leaders must act more like a community manager rather than an authoritarian.

Information is the key! Leaders must acknowledge that the market power is not gained by expanding business operations or areas of influence but by deepening understanding of technology. A right mix of universal characteristics and digital leadership traits can help businesses cruise through dynamic and rapidly changing digital world with optimism and idealism.