5 Disastrous Situations You Could Face As a Leader In 2024 — And How to Survive Them, According to Experts From toxic remote workplaces to economic insecurity and global disasters, there's a lot to worry about. But you can be prepared.
By Liz Brody Edited by Frances Dodds
This story appears in the January 2024 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »
There was never a time when being a great leader was easy, exactly. But in our current era, leading is arguably harder than ever. The pandemic ushered in the normalization of remote and hybrid workplaces, which require a whole new skillset to manage — especially since the current workforce spans five generations. There's lowgrade anxiety about a recession, and artificial intelligence stealing all our jobs. There's political division in an election year, and devastating wars raging around the globe. And on top of it all, it's easier than ever to spin off an angry email, Slack message or tweet that will land you in hot water. So how can you navigate all of these dynamics, while still being the inspiring, ambitious leader that people need? We asked experts to advise on the worst-case scenarious, and how to prepare for them.
What to do if… the recession shows up late for dinner
You know the recession we dodged last year? Well, some experts think it may just be tardy. Matt Higgins, an executive fellow at Harvard Business School and cofounder of RSE Ventures, believes all that boisterous consumer spending was propped up on "the contrails of federal stimulus money from the pandemic" — and it's about to run out. At the very least, many researchers forecast a slowdown.
If you'll need funding this year, Higgins suggests raising it now, even with unfavorable terms — because they may only get worse in six months. It's also an essential time to be building for profitability, says Jay Steinfeld, author of Lead from the Core: The 4 Principles for Profit and Prosperity. "What is wrong with growing 10% a year? You're in control of your destiny."
Beyond that, your "bridging" skills are more critical than ever, says Linda A. Hill, a professor of business administration at Harvard Business School and faculty chair of the Leadership Initiative. Sharing talent, technology, and customer acquisition by teaming up with competitors or other players in your space is a great way to cut costs. "If you're a meal-kit brand, for instance," says Steinfeld, "include coupons for other companies in your boxes and they can do the same for you." Most importantly, if there is a recession, don't give up. "Just get through 2024," says Higgins. "Recessions tend to spark a new era of tremendous innovation and high growth."
Related: If You Want People to Follow You, Stop Being a Boss — 8 Steps to Truly Effective Leadership
What To Do If… your Gen Z employees quit on you
Retaining talent will be a beast. You're dealing with five generations in one workforce, and the youngest workers want to know where their employers stand on the issues of the day — whether it's climate change, racial equity, or LGBTQ rights.
But they (and all your other employees) also want to know this: What is my future here, and how can I grow? Those questions should be addressed in constant conversations, say Whitney Johnson and Amy Humble, founders of the leadership development firm Disruption Advisors. Even if you can't offer promotions or big raises, you can provide learning opportunities to keep talent engaged. You might try "lily-pad positions" where someone in finance, for example, goes to marketing for a few months for a challenge that benefits both teams. "It's amazing when you refocus someone, how much energy they contribute to the larger whole," says Humble.
As for captivating Gen Z, turn on the radical candor and vulnerability, says Michael McQueen, the author of Mindstuck, a new book on how to sway others. Authenticity and transparency create the kind of credibility that can temper disagreements on social issues. "The leader people are looking for today is confident while having the posture that, 'I might get it wrong, but we're going there with gusto and figuring it out along the way. And I want you to be a part of the journey.'"
Related: 4 Ways to Harness Your Leadership Brand and Transform Your Workplace Culture
What to do if… your Slack goes nuclear
"We've got an election that's going to be toxic and culture wars playing out in all sorts of ways," says McQueen. "People are trigger-happy and ready to be outraged." One slip of the finger can combust a whole Slack channel, splintering into snarky side-feeds of, Did you see what she just wrote?
Especially in a remote setting, resentments can catch on fire and lead to massive work dysfunction. So as a leader, whenever a conflict crops up, you can't pick up the phone fast enough. Johnson and Humble advise talking to the participants, and maybe arranging a group call with the team, which can quickly defuse the situation.
They also suggest heading off these blowups by creating outlets for your team to discuss what's going on in the world. In their own firm they have a dedicated time on Monday morning, as well as a special Slack channel, for people to share what they're going through. That way, Humble says, "they can remain focused and work on building the things we need to build."
Related: The 5 Key Characteristics and Qualities of a Good Leader
What to do if… AI makes your company irrelevant
That's probably not going to happen in 2024, but, as Humble says, "If you haven't had a ChatGPT conversation, you are behind the eight ball, my friend." Still, what matters most is how the technology applies to your company. If you bring AI in, "Make sure whoever heads that up knows your business, products, and clients as well as they know AI," says Amanda Goodall, professor of leadership at Bayes Business School at the City, University of London and author of Credible: The Power of Expert Leaders. "That marriage of knowledge is going to be really important in the AI revolution, which is coming at us fast."
Getting your team to adopt AI is another challenge — but that's less about the tech than the cultural change. Experimentation is a learned behavior, and you have to show employees you're willing to get uncomfortable if you want them to follow suit. "We have executives work with actors to become better storytellers, so they can explain: Why are we doing this? And how does it go back to our purpose?" says Hill, the Harvard Business School professor. One company she's followed asked each employee to come up with a use case for the AI tool so everyone felt engaged with it.
Related: Leadership Qualities the Most Successful Small Business Owners Share
What to do if… some other freak event (think: pandemic) upends your world
Who knows what it could be. A catastrophic cyberattack? Civil war? Massive food shortage? Successful leaders, says Hill, must build a team "in which everyone, from the person cleaning the floors to the CEO, gets that they're supposed to think about both the present and the future — and not assume some special group over there will do it." You must also make space so that people feel free to speak up honestly, Hill stresses, and not only show that you can deal with conflict, but use it constructively. Companies with polite cultures tend to be less agile and less innovative.
That calls on another skill set — one William Vanderbloemen found to differentiate top leaders in his 2023 book Be the Unicorn. "Entrepreneurs have a belief that they can bend reality to their will and make things happen," he says. "The shadow side of that strength is a tendency toward narcissism; you don't know what else is going on." To burst that bubble: Respond to emails and texts quickly, make yourself available to employees, and check in with no agenda so they know you're interested in them as people. "It's the single easiest win leaders can walk away with," says Vanderbloemen.
