Leadership across the globe has taken a new stride post-pandemic. With an increased pressure of delivering more and better, agility and adaptability have become new corporate mantras.

Bringing to light the challenges of a leader in this newfound normal, DDI's latest Global Leadership Forecast 2021 report highlights the direct impact of the rapidly transforming workplace on the retention of critical leadership talent.

The global study published by DDI in partnership with The Josh Bersin Academy is the world's largest study on leadership. It stated that 37% of HR in India rate their leaders as the high quality that continues to drop as compared to the previous study of 2018 which is a worrying scenario. In contrast to this, 69% of business leaders believe their leaders within the organizations are high quality, which is higher in comparison to 54% in 2018. The study further stated that 57% of leaders are considering changing companies to advance in their careers. Along with this one, another interesting finding is that 20% of HR think they have a strong bench strength to fill leadership roles.

With the once-in-a-generation pandemic is making organizations rethink their operational models, it has further widened the faith of HR to have successors internally. The paramount shift in the way and mode of working and communicating has necessitated the need for specific competencies/skills for the future. The study highlighted critical differentiated skills for the future – Leading Virtual Teams, Coaching/Delegation, Empathy, Digital Acumen, and Building Business Partnerships. While the global survey indicated about 1 in 5 leaders effective in Leading Virtual teams, the India results indicated about 2 out of 5 leaders are effective in leading virtual teams.

Amogh Deshmukh, Managing Director, DDI India said, "Workplace has undergone tremendous transformation in the recent past, thanks to the pandemic. While it has opened a plethora of opportunities, confidence in leadership bench strength continues to remain low. Also, a specific set of skills/competencies are going to help drive technology and people resources. These insights from the study clearly indicate a leadership crisis that is setting in owing to the growing disparity in what leaders want and what leaders are provided with. We are confident that findings will provide a direction for Business leaders and HR heads of companies in order to relook, review their leadership development strategies."

As part of the larger Global Leadership Forecast 2021 study, the India report is based on survey responses from 917 leaders and 50 HR professionals, and these results provide actionable insights specifically for India's leadership context and business market. Global Leadership Forecast 2021 is the ninth Forecast since DDI began the stream of research in 1999. It's also one of the most expansive leadership research projects ever conducted. This report summarizes dozens of practical, evidence-based recommendations for critical business issues. These range from digital transformation to gender and generational diversity to the roles of purpose and culture in building an effective, sustainable leadership strategy for a digital age.