The New Roles Of Leaders In 21st Century Organisations

Change and disruption have been a continual feature of the 21st century. World events during this time have led to historical firsts and significantly impacted how people live and work.

“Leaders in conventional organisations prioritise maximising gains and hitting goals one after the other. They assume the functions of the planner (creating the strategy and turning it into a plan), the director (delegate responsibilities), and the controller ( ensuring everyone does what they’re assigned to do). However, today’s organisational environments are sophisticated, demanding a novel leadership approach,” says well-established news site journalist Olivia Jones of 8News.

Has a leader’s role evolved? If this is the case, what characteristics define leaders in 21st-century organisations?

Visionary

Leaders, who are known as visionaries, help the development of a strong, unifying mission and vision that serves as the organisation’s North Star and transcends it. They do not get to this understanding in the conference room. Instead, they develop their visions organically inside the organisation by watching and listening to individuals throughout the whole system, putting up suggestions for thought, and fusing them with their innovative thinking.

In addition to acting as visionaries, leaders collaborate with their teams to transform the concept into measurable goals that empowered teams may pursue.

Architect

Leaders take on the role of architects when they are clear about what must be done. Instead of developing a strategic plan, architect leaders play the more complex task of creating a transparent, empowered system that can continuously plan, carry out, and modify the flow of resources throughout reduced work intervals in pursuit of its goals. They encourage a more thorough analysis of the frameworks at the organisation’s centre, opening up possibilities for new opportunities.

Catalyst

Leaders act as catalysts, releasing energy everywhere in the organisation. They accomplish this in four main ways:

  • Removing obstacles that stand in the way of empowered teams from putting ideas into action.
  • Fostering interconnection across the organisation.
  • Assisting individuals in connecting their work to the organisation’s mission and aspirations.
  • Promoting a welcoming and inclusive wellness atmosphere where individuals can help put their genuine selves into the workplace, work in empowering and sustainable ways, and continue pursuing the full spectrum of their organisational goals.

Coach

As individuals are given the authority to fulfil organisational objectives, they must acquire better professional experience, develop the ability to think strategically and hone their collaboration skills. The development of attitudes, knowledge, and skills is a crucial area that leaders must focus on.

To do this, leaders as coaches promote a culture of learning within the organisation by fostering a wide variety of official and informal learning programmes. They create conditions that encourage experimentation and stimulate discussion of successes and improvement areas. Additionally, they include coaching throughout their team meetings by seeking out diverse viewpoints to broaden the range of possible solutions and looking for answers than they do offering advice.

Do You Have What It Takes To Be A 21st Century Leader?

While it could appear like 21st-century leadership is quite tricky, it can also be gratifying if done well.

Burn Bright, along with our goal of developing young leaders, believes that successful leadership traits are relevant to both an individual leader and a leadership team. The cornerstones of this efficient leadership approach are the uniquely human qualities of leadership. Organisations must continually look for leaders who exhibit these qualities or develop the leadership skills of their current staff.

Do you impart the crucial success characteristics listed above to your organisational leadership teams? What difficulties do you now face, and how do you intend to deal with them?

Reach out to us and allow us to help you develop the 21st leader innate in you.

By Maya Carter Jones

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I found Burn Bright in the midst of studying civil engineering at the University of Wollongong, just as I wanted a richer, deeper, more full experience of life.

Through Burn Bright, I have met many students and volunteers who are all seeking to find their place in the world. When we come together at NLC or SLC, no matter our age, we begin on the same page, of wanting to do good for ourselves, our community, and the world. And then we are thrown into a program that brings us closer to each other, our purpose, and how to bring forth this impact. It’s like having your cake and eating it too.

Volunteering with Burn Bright stoked a fire in me – It helped me feel comfortable in myself and made me realise life isn’t just about work, study, or productivity, but our relationships and how we connect with others along the way.

I have learned skills in videography, worked for a top-tier corporation in marketing, and most recently published a book called “18 and lost? So were we” 

I have a passion for storytelling, bring loads of energy wherever I go, and am dedicated to helping young people move through the initiation of leaving high school and going into the ‘real world’. 

The best part for me is being able to stay connected to the latest generation growing through high school. To see them grow, expand and express more of themselves is like watching an artwork paint itself. It’s magic.

I am Simon Thurston, a Kiwi based in Perth. I work as an Instructional Designer and in my spare time I enjoy reading, running, and board games.

Since my initial connection to Burn Bright I have been onboard with their mission. Burn Bright’s focus on building the capabilities enables students of all ages to see how they can shape their world through connections with others and their own self discovery.

Seeing others grow, learn, and open up is what keeps me coming back, to help others realise their potential and how they can influence their future and their community is a definite highlight. It’s infectious, the atmosphere when they run a program or camp is welcoming, exciting, emotional, and rewarding all in one.

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Hi, friends! I’m Kelsie, a psychologist from central QLD working in private practice. I got involved with Burn Bright officially in 2016, but the journey started long before that. I attended the National Leadership Camp (now hosted annually by Burn Bright) in 2009. It had such a profound impact on me that I returned as a mentor and volunteer. Those connections ultimately lead me to joining the Burn Bright team as an adult.

When I transitioned from facilitating with the Burn Bright team to working as a psychologist, I was so grateful for an incredible foundation of skills (particularly facilitation, communication and interpersonal skills) along with a strong grounding in positive psychology that Burn Bright integrates into their ethos.

I can’t imagine my life without volunteering for Burn Bright. I have met some of my dearest friends through the Burn Bright crew. I’ve found that volunteering for BB is rewarding, humbling, and often brings as much personal growth for the volunteer as it does for the young person.

From a professional perspective, I love that Burn Bright programs/camps support the adolescent individuation process by providing an exciting and supportive environment for teens to explore their own sense of self, personality, identify and values alongside other young people.

Imagine this POV: you’re back at school wanting to figure everything out and fit in – and you find
yourself in a room with amazing music that uplifts you and hooks you in. You meet the team of
dynamic, interesting, caring facilitators whose own friendships inspire you. Their facilitation skills bring about amazing light-bulb moments and lessons that light a fire inside you… It makes me want to feel that for myself again. The next best thing, for me, is volunteering for the team who passes that on to other young people.

My start at Burn Bright is one of the best cases of one door closing and another door opening. After losing my job at a local pub while on uni holidays, I started looking for new opportunities that were different and decided to volunteer. Searching for opportunities, I found working bees, community driving and nursing home visits, but the chance to become a National Leadership Camp intern stood out. Over nearly six months, I worked with the team to pull off Burn Bright’s first National Leadership Camp, and had an absolute blast in the process. After camp, I started working for Burn Bright while studying, doing anything and everything — data analysis, hiring strategy and even picking up furniture.

Finishing up working for Burn Bright in 2019, I am still actively involved with the Burn Bright volunteer community. I’ve found that the emphasis placed on investing in your relationships, understanding your values and making an impact allow you to be accepted for you. This has given me the tools needed to make the difficult decisions that life will inevitably throw at you. Besides all that, I’ve had a ton of fun and formed life-long friendships with people I may have never crossed paths with otherwise. “Get involved — you’ll change your life for the better and make life‑long friends in the process”.

I am a health science student from Perth wanting to get into the mental health realm of occupational therapy. In the meantime, I work as a barista and supervisor at a beachside café. In my spare time, I love to play netball, be around my friends and I have just gotten into crocheting. I went to Perth College where I was lucky enough to go to the first Perth College Leadership Camp in 2018 as a student and absolutely loved it. What really drew me in was the atmosphere that was created, the open conversations, and the lasting relationships formed.

Since then I have been a mentor for the Perth College Leadership Camp in 2019, 2020, and 2021 and had the opportunity to go to the National Leadership Camp in 2019. When Burn Bright comes to Perth I also love helping out at their programs as much as I can.

Volunteering for Burn Bright has given me so much that I could never have imagined. I have learned so much about myself and I have so much more confidence in myself and my abilities that I know I wouldn’t have had if I wasn’t exposed to the amazing opportunities volunteering for Burn Bright has given me. Before being involved I would never have seen myself being a mentor, role model, and facilitator to students, but now I can confidently say that I am, and I have made an impact on others that I am proud of. I have also made so many meaningful connections to so many amazing people from all around Australia through Burn Bright. I get asked quite a bit why I keep coming back to my old school to volunteer and it’s simply because I was given this amazing opportunity to be a part of the Burn Bright programs and if I can help facilitate that experience to someone else then why wouldn’t I?

I was born in Perth and moved to Sydney in my early 20’s to continue work as a youth worker and surfboard maker. This was followed by 30 years working in IT as a computer programmer.

Following retirement in 2016 I searched for an organisation that was aligned with my values of servant leadership and service, especially in the youth space. This search led to Burn Bright where I am now volunteering one day a week and mentoring at the National Leadership Camp. Volunteering with Burn Bright gives me a great deal of hope and confidence in the next generation of leaders. It is a pleasure to be a part of the Burn Bright family.

I have been married to Denise for 41 years and we both very much feel part of the Burn Bright team.

When not at Burn Bright you may find me running along Manly beach, riding my mountain bike or indulging in my passion for photography.

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I am passionate about seeing young people succeed, and there’s nothing I enjoy more than watching them become the next generation of change-makers.

I have been a champion of the ethos and work of Burn Bright since its inception in 2014, and consider them to be the leading experts in their field. By delivering impactful leadership and wellbeing programs to students across Australia, they offer the knowledge, skills and engagement to invoke lasting positive change in school communities.

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