Successful digital leadership increasingly requires less specific technical knowledge, but above all authentic and preferably analog social encounters. This is the most important finding of a study conducted by the German Institute for Communications and Media Training (DIKT), the First Global Leadership Communications Association (1st GLCA) and the Macromedia University of Applied Sciences in spring 2023 with around 300 managers and employees. This finding applies to all areas of leadership, from leadership skills and community building to conflict resolution and internal CEO branding.
The respondents agree on the general need for digital change, which 89.4 percent rate as important or very important and which 72.4 percent also generally see as a task for executives. Even more (82.4 percent) explicitly see driving forward digital processes as the task of the top executive (managing director/CEO). As a rule, however, digital leadership in one’s own company is only perceived as providing information about the essentials (53.6 percent). Only one-third (33.6 percent) describe it as open and transparent. Only 12.9 percent have really negative experiences with closed, purely hierarchical management.
If you ask about particularly important competencies for digital leaders, communication at eye level between employees and managers ranks first by a long way (average 1.9 on a five-point grading scale). In second place is the ability to stimulate conversations and respond to emotions (average grade 2.6). Looking explicitly at personality traits in the context of internal CEO branding, authenticity and honesty (22.0 and 21.3 percent, respectively) rank well ahead of flexibility, tolerance and creativity (15.2 to 11 percent).
A corresponding picture can be found in digital conflict resolution, which is often perceived as being too factual and not sufficiently people-oriented. Interestingly, employees and managers alike would like to see a balance between factual and emotional approaches (71.3 percent). However, this has so far only been experienced in 49.8 percent of cases. The study shows similar results in relation to virtual communities, where a sense of community arises particularly frequently when the manager is also experienced as present at least once a week (44.5 percent).
“The CEO in the digital age is not only in demand as a visionary of digital development in the company, but above all as an empathetic listener and coach for his employees,” comments DIKT Managing Director Nikolai A. Behr on the results. Matteo Scaravelli, 1st GLCA President adds, “Modern leadership is no longer conceivable without effective personal and authentic communication. This study shows this very clearly.” Holger Sievert, Macromedia study director states, “The results of the study confirm that eye level and empathy are among the most important aspects of leadership communication, especially in the digital age.”
A total of 262 people were surveyed for this study in winter/spring 2023, 64.5 percent of whom were employees without management responsibilities and 35.5 percent of whom were managers at various hierarchical levels. Slightly more than half of the respondents were female (51.7 percent), and just under half were male (47.5 percent); 0.8 percent indicated diverse. Most respondents were 26-35 years old (35.9 percent), but older groups such as 56-65 year olds (9.5 percent) were still significantly represented in the sample. 70.3 percent have a college degree.
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