Quantum Leadership
If you read the title of this article and thought about quantum physics, then you are on the right track. Quantum leadership is informed by quantum thinking which is guided by the principles of quantum physics. Quantum leaders operate on the premise of formulating multiple scenarios for what the future might hold. These leaders encourage questions and experiments. The people who are classified as quantum leaders thrive on uncertainty.
Put simply, quantum leadership is the act of leading from the future.
The Role of Quantum Leadership in Today’s World
We have established what quantum leadership is. Let us now look at what this new type of leadership means for today’s world. This new type of leadership is characterized by uncertainty. Because of this characteristic, people who are quantum leaders are equipped and well poised to deal with change and uncertainty in a creative way. Quantum leaders are able to better and more creatively deal with global interconnectivity.
The current Organizational structure of western organizations is known as Newtonian organizations. Moving towards a Quantum Organization means moving away from a Newtonian Organization. The paradigm needs to be shifted towards that of an organization that is proactive and not reactive.
Quantum leadership is the definition of proactive. Because this way of thinking involves developing multiple scenarios for what the future might hold, it makes for a very proactive way of thinking.
In 2020, when the world is facing its most devastating pandemic in modern history, the world could have truly benefited from Quantum leadership.
Organizations should be moving towards the creation of a Quantum organization because it makes them more prepared to handle and adapt quickly to volatility and rapid changes. Within the realm of quantum leadership, there is a phenomenon known as quantum planning. What quantum planning does is prepare an organization for the most imaginable and most unimaginable future scenarios. The way quantum leaders operate is that there must be a solution to all the possible things that could go wrong. Basically, they have a contingency plan for a contingency plan and then another back-up plan. Talk about preparation.
Modern-day organizations must define a new leadership paradigm that can deal creatively with rapid change. The reason the world should move away from the Newtonian Organization is that this form of organization embraces and requires certainty and predictability. They are typically hierarchical in structure, with perceived power emerging from the top, and authority and control exercised at every level of management. They tend to be heavily bureaucratic and rule-bound, but most importantly, they are necessarily or unnecessarily inflexible and are managed as though the individual parts organize the whole. The Quantum Organization itself relies upon the emergence of unique solutions, ideas, and insights.
It's safe to say that had the world adopted this approach to organizational culture could have prevented some of the economic strains that came with COVID-19.
Newtonian organizations no longer work. COVID-19 has taught us that.