Leadership: guiding people, shaping culture, building trust

Leadership in today’s world of work is no longer about command and control. It’s about creating a safe space where people can express their potential, make decisions, collaborate, and contribute to value creation. Good leadership is not measured in individual KPIs, but in the effect it has on team climate, energy, and autonomy.¹

In a world shaped by uncertainty, technology, and distributed work, leadership becomes a relational, transversal skill rooted in trust, communication, emotional intelligence, and ownership.²

Leadership and the Future of Work

In the evolving world of work, leadership can no longer rely solely on management or traditional top-down models. Today’s leaders must listen, read subtle signals, foster collaboration, and adapt quickly. In other words, we need transformational leaders — those who can drive change starting from people.³

Key leadership competencies today

• Emotional intelligence: the ability to recognize and manage your own emotions and those of others⁴. A critical step is to assess your levels across emotional intelligence domains with the emotional intelligence test on this site.
• Ability to inspire and engage: generating shared meaning and motivation.
• Active listening and effective communication: creating space for dialogue and reflection, even in remote contexts.
• Complexity management: making fast decisions with imperfect data in fluid scenarios.
• Focus on people development: not just delegating but helping others grow.

Leadership and trust

Trust is the core currency of effective leadership. Teams that trust their leaders are more productive, resilient, and less prone to burnout. Trust isn’t enforced — it’s earned through consistency, transparency, listening, and presence.⁵

Your ability to ethically earn the trust of those you lead can be assessed using a scientific framework like the leadership test available on this site.

Major leadership styles in the modern workplace

• Transformational leadership: inspires innovation and a shared sense of purpose.
• Relational leadership: focuses on empathy, human connection, and interpersonal dynamics.
• Creative leadership: promotes divergent thinking and helps teams generate new ideas⁶.
• Servant leadership: puts people first and supports their growth and well-being (see dedicated entry).

Leadership is not just a position — it’s action

Anyone can act as a leader, regardless of their title. The concept of shared leadership is based on the idea that every person can lead in specific contexts or through their unique expertise. Organizations that embrace this become more agile, distributed, and resilient.

Conclusion

Leadership today is no longer just a set of managerial skills. It’s an attitude — a way of shaping context, supporting people, and facilitating change. It means being “at the service” of the team and the vision. In a complex world, it’s the leaders who create psychological safety, trust, and connection who truly make the difference.

References

• Binda Zane, E. (2021). Emotional Intelligence and Leadership. Milan: Self-published. ↩︎
• Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional Intelligence. New York: Bantam Books. ↩︎
• Bass, B. M. (1999). Two decades of research and development in transformational leadership. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 8(1), 9–32. https://doi.org/10.1080/135943299398410 ↩︎
• Roche, M., Haar, J. M., & Luthans, F. (2014). The role of mindfulness and psychological capital on the well-being of leaders. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 19(4), 476–489. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0037183 ↩︎
• Burke, C. S., Sims, D. E., Lazzara, E. H., & Salas, E. (2007). Trust in leadership: A multi-level review and integration. Leadership Quarterly, 18(6), 606–632. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2007.09.006 ↩︎
• Binda Zane, E. (2024). Creative Leadership. Ayros. ↩︎