Kienbaum Consultants International introduces its 2016 updated study about the Executive Leadership Competency Models of the future: Next Generations CEOs. Foreseeing what leaders will look like in the next decades and the Leadership skills required at the top. “New Leadership” profiles are and will increasingly be dictated by the Digital surge.

1. Kienbaum Consultants International
Introduces its 2016 updated study about the Executive Leadership Competency Models of the future
Next Generations CEOs
Foreseeing what leaders will look like in the next decades
and the Leadership skills required at the top
“New Leadership” profiles are and will increasingly be dictated by the Digital surge
(This study is based on face-to-face conversations with more than a hundred business leaders in France and Europe)

2. Macro level evolutions at stake
The growing use of technology,
the economics impacts of automation
and the evolution of the societal model
Companies are getting bigger
and above all, flatter
25 years from now, some 30% of the
world's 2,500 top global CEOs will be
women (around 5% today)
CEOs’ selection, turnover, and
succession issues: an increasing impact
on the enterprise
100 billion dollars: estimation of the economic
cost for the world’ largest companies of
appointing the wrong CEO through forced
turnovers.
Over 80% of the companies are planning their
CEO’s succession and it is increasing.
40% of all forced turnovers have taken place
within the lowest-performing companies.
The companies still need to enhance forward-
looking and creative CEO specifications, with a
big picture and global understanding.
1/3 by 2040
A dynamic complexity
Success trends
A new generation & economy
A clear catching-up and a start to a natural
rebalancing of the particularly biased and unfair
situation, based on the recent trends in female
education, appointments and social norm
evolution.
But this prediction can also be related to the
requirement of a new style of leadership to guide
corporations in times of perpetual changes: more
empathetic, open and collaborative with a high
level of emotional intelligence.
In an increasingly digital-first world, business
organizations are becoming more and more flat
and horizontal structures with fluid exchanges and
the emergence of a liquid workforce.
This liquid workforce will build companies’
tomorrow competitive advantage.
In 2015, millennials became the largest share of the
workforce. By 2025, that number will be 76%
globally.
Worker redistribution with automation taking over
more routine, manual and repetitive tasks: around
45% activities/jobs concerned today.
43% of the US workforce is expected to be
freelance by 2020.
* Figures on that page are from Strategy& study: CEOs, Governance, and Success

3. Complexity is the new normal
When uncertainty becomes an opportunity
The 17th century mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal’s wager can he be used as
an elegant reference to formulate a pragmatic argument:
To build the most durable and outstanding competitive advantages.
Set up a clear strategic course and accept to regularly change the way to get there. Build a tactical agility to test and change as
often as required and as quickly as possible.
Rely on a well-defined vision and shared values and communicate consistently and intensively without altering it to stimulate
confidence and faith to take advantage of every opportunity.
Nearly half of the CEOs feel that they aren’t prepared to handle the ever-rising complexity.
The level of complexity is expected to continue to grow in the next decades.
Coping with change is not enough
Business leaders must interact and step up as part of society as a whole.
Leaders are no longer appointed and need to be elected, trusted, connected to the people.
The foreseeing changes are more than just business fluctuations. It is a inclusive process reunifying and shaking up business and
social pillars.
A
VUCA
world
Necessity to effectively capitalize on complexity and invest on it
To engage in a social, business, politic and technology integration
And accept unbalance
Enhance breakthrough thinking and develop an
experimentation culture at all levels of the organization.
Fight the natural impulse to wait for simplicity and take
calculated risk.
The rational choice is to believe in God
The rational choice is to embrace ambiguity and
act despite uncertainty: invest in the future so you don’t miss it
Volatile & Versatile
An environment with more risk, different and faster cycles
Complex & Open
Not only global but multimodal, deeper, wider and fluid
The wise thing to do is to live your life as if God does
exist because such a life has everything to gain and
nothing to lose.
If we live as though God exists, and He does indeed
exist, we have gained heaven. If He doesn’t exist, we
have lost nothing.
If, on the other hand, we live as though God does not
exist and He really does exist, we have gained hell and
punishment and have lost heaven and bliss.
Uncertain & Unusual
Getting harder and harder to predict long term trends and even
immediate behaviors
Ambiguous
Not an evolution or a transformation anymore but a revolution
engaging all parts of interconnected societies

4. From the mid-sixties
to now
The Top Manager
 Large and management savvy C-suite advisors
 Career manager profiles
 Pragmatic and deal maker
 Stronger cultural role
1st half of the 20th
Century
The Indisputable Sovereign
 Imperial entrepreneurs
 Industry builders
 Reduced C-suite and executive team
In the next decades
The Authentic &
Simplifier Visionary
 1/3 of the CEO’s will be women
 Increased mastering of technology
 Less barriers to entry new markets for small players
 Continuous learning and more focus leaders
 Less autocratic and more collaborative management environment
 IT and technology integrated in everything
 Better informed and data-supported decisions
 War for resources
 Age of transparency
Today
The Agile Leader
 Flattening of the hierarchy
 Great variety of experience
 The world is becoming more unpredictable
 Global war for talent
 Necessity to build durable and strong corporate
cultures
Move towards a service-
based economy
Beginning of
globalization
Global recession
Emergence of
developed countries
Environmental risks
Executive Leadership evolution:
past and upcoming models & trends
Rise of the
complexity
Change is a
permanent process
Technologies
expansion

5. The face of the next leaders
Strategic Skills & Vision
Self Awareness & Communication
+ Emotional Intelligence
Inspirational & Charismatic Leadership
+ Social Intelligence
Execution Skills & Agility
Social Architect & Connector
Formulate guidance and give
orientations
More animation and less control
Talent recruiter and developer
Passionate, Engaged
Complexity Savvy
Inspiring & Federative
Embrace ambiguity
Risk taker, fast and flexible
Tech Adopter
Resilience
Persuasive and enthusiastic
Influencer
Open & Self-learner
Creative
& Big-Picture Thinker
Transparent & Responsible
Exemplarity
Humility
Authenticity
Followership and empowerment
Clear vision
Leverage collaboration
Simplifier in Chief
with every stakeholders : teams, customers, citizens…
Strong communicator, Team player, Customer centric
Prepared for the unknown
Forward looking
Breakthrough Innovation
Intuition
Curious
Agile
Empathetic
#4 major leadership dimensions
translated in #8 leadership profiles

6. About Kienbaum Consultants International
Kienbaum is a world’s leading family-owned provider of senior-level executive search and leadership
consulting, serving clients globally for 70 years. Our consultancy services uniquely concentrate on
leadership and transformation. In Germany since 1945 and in France for over 20 years, Kienbaum
advises large multinational organizations, listed or family-owned medium-sized companies and
startups on building, reinforcing and developing their executive and leadership teams.
Our Services
About the author
Romain Eyherabide focuses on Executive Search and Management
Assessment in the Technology, Communications as well as Media
& Entertainment sectors.
He ran several Digital Leadership studies and is part of Kienbaum’s
digital practice advising Chief Executive Officers regarding
transformation challenges.
He also serves clients on Information & Technology Officers
assignments and is particularly knowledgeable in Innovation
projects.
Romain Eyherabide
Contact
romain.eyherabide@kienbaum.com
Kienbaum Paris
47, avenue George V
75008 Paris
Tel. 33 (0)1 56 59 12 00
www.kienbaum.com
While continually working in new areas to develop the most creative and independent solutions and
concepts for the markets of tomorrow, we focus our expertise on how an individual can have
impact on competitiveness. Our job in helping organizations is obviously highly resonant with the
world’s evolution and company challenges to address unprecedented transformations and grasp
increase complexity at high speed.
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