Future CEO: Top 6 Skills That You Need in 2020

Sofiia Veremeienko

January 20, 2020

A good CEO of the future knows how to work with data, understands his subordinates and does not drive them into the framework. Read in the article what skills you will need after 5 years.

As time goes on, the labor market is changing and typical office employees are not at all what they were 10 years ago. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning are developing, so the responsibilities of the same specialist are being transformed, the leader’s functions are changing. Professions disappear, new ones come in their place.

Already now you need to master the skills that come in handy to become an effective CEO in the next 5 years.

1. Understanding Technology

Fundamental shifts, that are caused by the tech boom, change the nature of labor. Technology comes to the fore. The leader of the future is not just an Administrator and Manager, but also a specialist with “computational thinking”. He must be able to work with large amounts of data, analyze them. Technologies will create additional problems related to data management, privacy, conflicts. The Manager should be able to solve them. It is impossible to do these without a clear understanding of the work of technologies.

2. Decentralized Leadership

The boss ordered everyone so you should listen and perform. Such kind of system dies. Leading corporations already use the approach of “management without bosses” or “team management.” In a couple of years, the main backbone of workers will be representatives of Generation Z, who do not accept pressure. Most issues, excluding strategic decisions, will be addressed collectively. The key skill of the leader is to learn how to work with the team, distribute tasks, and take the initiative of other employees.

3. Work on the Result, Salary for Effectiveness

Managers need to learn how to control staff with different schedules, freelance, and full-time employees. The percentage of remote employees is increasing every year. Managers will need to be able to evaluate work, regardless of the number of hours spent in the office, to approve the system of labor efficiency. An important skill of a leader is to think less about the process and more about the result.

4. Flexibility and Work in the Face of Contradictions

By 2025, a situation will arise that will have to work with completely different generations of workers: young Zetas and Millennials. They have different values and approaches to work, so Managers will need to find a common language with everyone. A variety of cultures, ages, demographics and social characteristics can create conflict situations. Leaders must learn to work with any people and understand their characteristics.

5. Openness

On one hand, the leader must do everything to protect the confidentiality of the company. On the other, to maintain a market trend for transparency and openness. Companies are required to have up-to-date information about the business, maximum interaction with employees, communications with partners and customers in instant messengers, social networks. As a result, managers do not know which side to take: openness or protection. You need to learn to look for a middle ground: not to keep information secret from the team, but to protect the personal data of employees.

6. Developed “Soft Skills” (Social Skills)

These managerial skills include sociability, teamwork, learning new things, creativity, time management skills, erudition. The most talented employees in the coming years, these skills will be well developed. The leader should be able to discern these skills, develop them for himself and the staff.

The ability to quickly navigate, readjust, be flexible and sociable, understanding technologies is the main knowledge and skills of a successful CEO in 2020. You need to master them now. In the next 5 years, success will be achieved by those who are not afraid of difficulties and changes.