The recent volatility in global financial markets has demonstrated why executives in the sector need to have a well-developed muscle for dealing with uncertainty and change. These leaders are constantly having to employ strategies that anticipate and address the challenges and opportunities presented by disruption—providing insight for leaders in every industry.
In this article, three of SMG’s most senior Executive Leadership Coaches provide a unique vantage point. Through their extensive executive coaching and mentoring engagements with CEOs and Senior Executives in the sector—as well as through their current Board Directorships—Virginia Mansell, Kerrie Kelly and Mark Devadason provide a valuable perspective on leading through change.
Disruption as the new normal
The financial services sector has experienced numerous disruptions, including financial crises, regulatory interventions, the emergence of new market entrants, fraud risks, and advancements in technology. However, the simultaneous global impact of COVID-19 represented an unprecedented disruption, with ongoing effects that business leaders continue to navigate today.
Executive leaders and decision makers within the financial services sector are faced with a business landscape brimming with new disruptions, challenges and opportunities. The expectations on leaders to understand, address and embrace the changing landscape brings with it complexities never before seen.
Rapid technological advancements challenge the traditional model of banking, global political unrest is causing uncertainty in the financial markets, increased governance requirements place greater onus on boards and leaders, cybercrime has escalated rapidly – and this is to name just a few.
The weight of these challenges and disruptions permeates through boards, senior leadership teams and organisations. Decision makers need to prepare for what is on the horizon to ensure they are making informed decisions that best support their teams and customers.
Understanding disruption
Disruption manifests in various forms and extends well beyond the financial services sector. The telecommunications, technology, and consulting services sectors also exemplify this new reality.
Examples of disruption include:
- Technological advancements that alter client expectations and behaviour
- Competitors challenging traditional business models, legacy systems, and sales channels
- Heightened governance and regulatory requirements for Boards and organisations
- Shifts in consumer expectations, for example younger generations inheriting wealth, but are their expectations of the banking sector the same as the generations before them?
- Operational risks due to technology failures or cyber threats, with flow on implications for customers
- Unforeseen events like a pandemic, necessitating comprehensive business transformation, including changes to workforce needs and expectations, such as flexible working arrangements, dormant office spaces, and the implementation of protocols to protect staff and customers.
How disruption impacts teams
During periods of pressure and uncertainty, the actions and behaviours of leaders are scrutinised, often having a direct impact on their teams.
The COVID-19 pandemic posed a significant challenge for many leaders, as they experienced a sudden loss of positional authority. With teams fully dispersed and operating in virtual environments, the traditional hierarchy was essentially flattened. Many introverts thrived in this new setting, finding their voice through video conferencing, while extroverts struggled with the absence of in-person interactions.
Leaders can prepare themselves in several ways to ensure their teams receive the guidance and support they need to operative effectively during challenging times.
- Being aware of personal stress triggers and maintaining a healthy and balanced approach to work. Making time to keep fit and focus on wellness is even more critical in times of corporate stress and disruption and can often be an inspiration to more junior staff.
- Focusing on employee engagement is critical. Quieter team members can sometimes be overlooked by leaders. Yet by implementing effective engagement strategies, leaders can unlock creativity and new perspectives on how to manage challenges from their whole team. A highly engaged team is key to improved customer service, loyalty and reducing employee turnover during disruption.
- Focusing on becoming a better listener benefits both leaders and team members. By modelling effective listening, leaders encourage teams to be more inclusive, consider diverse perspectives, and collectively manage the emotional and workload challenges during difficult times. Every team member plays a crucial role in supporting each other and the organization.
- Geographically dispersed and remote teams often encounter additional challenges. Isolation and disconnectedness can lead to incorrect assumptions and misaligned judgments. By equipping team members with the skills to constructively challenge judgments and assumptions, these issues can be mitigated, preventing them from becoming obstacles to problem-solving.
The role of leaders in navigating change
Leading and communicating both internally and externally on vision, values, and corporate purpose is no longer solely the CEO’s responsibility. The entire leadership team must articulate a clear vision for the future, especially during times of disruption. Leaders have a duty to support the CEO by reinforcing the vision and navigating change through their own actions and interactions with teams and customers. This collective effort allows leaders to inspire and align their teams towards common goals, fostering stronger and more resilient organisations.
How executive coaching supports leaders to navigate disruption
There are several areas where an executive coach can help leaders transition from merely surviving to thriving during times of disruption:
- Trusted Voice of Challenge: Coaches can push coachees to confront difficult questions and issues they may be avoiding. They help identify distractions and support the coachee in maintaining focus on essential tasks.
- Building Resilient Teams: Coaches assist coachees in understanding how to develop adaptable, engaged, and resilient teams through effective communication and a clear vision and purpose.
- Collaboration and Communication: Coaches work with coachees to enhance collaboration with executive peers and stakeholders, anticipate risks and opportunities, and communicate key messages across all levels of the organisation and externally.
- Leveraging Strengths: Coaches highlight and leverage areas of strength, bring awareness to communication styles, and help coachees understand their impact on others. Team members seek genuine leaders they can trust, who are authentic, clear on expectations, and capable of calmly managing through challenging times.
“A great analogy for navigating change, is to think of it like navigating ice sheets in the arctic. You cannot simply set a compass course and stick to the plan. The sheets of ice you are walking on a constantly shifting relative to the next ice sheet and frequent course corrections are required.”
Mark Devadason – SMG Executive Coach Mentor
5 key strategies for financial leaders to prepare for future disruption
- Stay on top of external global changes and political developments
- Engage through effective communication with their teams and embrace the ideas of the introverts in their team
- Build and nurture effective stakeholder networks
- Understand the true power and risks of AI
- Stay focused on the needs of the customer.
The financial services sector is undergoing a profound transformation driven by technological advancements, regulatory changes, and evolving customer expectations. Top executives who embrace disruption and lead with agility, innovation, and a customer-centric approach are well-positioned to navigate this changing landscape.
By building a culture of continuous learning, resilience and adaptability, these leaders can not only mitigate risks but also seize new opportunities for growth and differentiation. As the industry continues to evolve, the ability to anticipate and respond to disruption will be a key determinant of success. The future belongs to those who are not just prepared for change but are actively shaping it.
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