“We often think we know who the high performers are before we begin building systems for people’s development, continuous learning and the like,” said Kurt Strovink, a senior partner with McKinsey in a Feb. 14 company podcast. “But one of the interesting things about leadership cultures is, sometimes people rise who you didn’t think were your high-potential folks,” said Mr. Strovink.
Recently, Glassdoor forecasted that 1 in 10 Generation Z professionals will hold managerial roles across industries. Gen Z is also the only age group that ranked career development and advancement as a top factor in accepting a new role, McKinsey wrote.
This aligns with the concept of the “leadership factory,” a term coined in the 1980s by former McKinsey global managing partner Ron Daniel. It means people become leaders by investing time in their colleagues, giving feedback and sharing insights.
McKinsey identified six key traits leaders need in today’s environment:
- Optimism
- Selfless leadership
- Continuous learning
- Resilience
- Levity
- Stewardship
Editor’s note: This story was updated Feb. 28 at 12:04 p.m. Central time.