In English, Työelämä & asiantuntijuus 15.5.2025

Building Blocks for Future-Oriented Leadership

Teksti | Kirsi Maste , Marika Nikkinen

The ability of organizations to renew their leadership is one of the most critical success factors now and in the future. We are more than ever living in a VUCA world – one that is volatile, uncertain, complex, and often ambiguous. In these times, especially visionary and human-centered leadership is needed. As the operating environment is continuously changing, strategic renewal is key to success – and can only be done by leaders passionate about engaging people and creating the future with their teams.

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Photo by Frank H. / Adobe Stock (Laurea Education-licence)

This article sheds light on the ideology and approach of leadership training and the development of future leadership skills at Laurea. The article highlights the boundary conditions and areas of expertise in leadership that, in our view, facilitate human-centric, agile, and strategically successful renewal – both now and in the future. Drawing from Nordic leadership approach and our development work, we are assembling the building blocks for future-oriented leadership.

The Nordic leadership approach

The leadership approach in the Nordic countries has evolved into the Nordic leadership style, a well-known stereotype that is recognized globally.

The Nordic leadership style is deeply rooted in the Nordic welfare state, where the early hierarchical relationship between employers and workers evolved into a relationship between employees and the welfare state, emphasizing individuality and reducing dependency on employers. This shift supports flat organizational structures and adaptability, driven by small, open, and knowledge-intensive economies, like the Nordics. Employees in the Nordic countries are highly educated and identify strongly with their work, expecting flexibility and long-term direction from their leaders in change. The Nordic leadership style is valued for promoting high productivity, innovation, growth, employee satisfaction, and a good working environment, aiming to combine economic growth with democratic stability. (Andreasson & Lundqvist, 2018, 20-23.)

According to research by Andreasson and Lundqvist (2018, 27), the core of the Nordic leadership style consists of several different ethical considerations, such as democracy, human dignity, responsibility, obligations, rights, and the individual’s role in relation to the community. The core values that have guided leadership development in the Nordic region are openness, integrity, and trust.

The results from various studies highlight several distinct features that characterize the Nordic leadership culture. Firstly, flat organizational structures are prevalent, with a high degree of delegation of power and responsibility, demanding high individual performance, and fostering a strong individualistic perspective. Secondly, there is a low level of formality within organizations, with a high degree of informal rules and procedures. Thirdly, consensus and coaching are central to leadership, where leaders listen to all employees when making and implementing decisions, function primarily as coaches to inspire and motivate, and base their leadership on realistic visions that employees follow voluntarily. Additionally, Nordic leaders are known for their willingness to take risks and assume responsibility if things go wrong, while demonstrating high integrity and avoiding self-centeredness or status-seeking. Lastly, there is a strong emphasis on co-operation, focusing on consensus rather than competition and determination. (Andreasson and Lundqvist, 2018, 15.)

One manifestation of Nordic leadership is the so-called minimalist leadership. Frank Martela, a well-known Finnish philosopher, researcher, and author, wrote in an issue of Harvard Business Review about Finland as a pioneer of minimalist leadership. Martela describes Nordic minimalist leadership as follows: ”Leaders who practice it are less visible, strive to avoid being the center of attention, and exert less control. They let their employees shine, put the company’s interests ahead of their ego, and thus create stronger and more innovative companies.” (Martela, 2023)

Layers of leadership philosophy

In 2021, we revamped the leadership training offerings of Laurea’s Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration through a development process carried out with our work-life partner organizations. As a result of this valuable development work, we defined the most important phenomena and paradigms shaping todays and future leadership as shown in Figure 1.

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Figure 1: Layers of leadership philosophy (Maste & Martola 2023)

According to our thinking, at the core of everything is a humanistic view of people and a leadership philosophy based on positive psychology. According to the humanistic view of people, a person is internally motivated, self-actualizing, and striving for their best. A leadership perspective based on positive psychology emphasizes human strengths and positive potential. (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi 2000, 8.)

Another phenomenon defining leadership, in our view, is the ongoing paradigm shift. Paula Kilpinen, a Finnish executive advisor, business coach, and author, describes in her book Human-Centric Strategy how we are moving from the paradigm of competition towards the paradigm of creating shared value. In this new way of thinking, the focus is not so much on the opposition and competition between organizations, but on combining forces and creating new value together to support societal growth. In this context, culture and values, the purpose of the company, and the meaning of work are anchored at the center of leadership. (Kilpinen 2021, 73.)

The third significant factor shaping leadership thinking, in our opinion, is the accelerating technological revolution. Especially now and in the near future, new technologies like AI are revolutionizing work and leadership. When utilized correctly, AI frees up time from organizing routine tasks and work duties. This way, resources are freed for human-centric leadership and everyday interactions with people. (Järvilehto 2023.) On the other hand, leading with data will, in our view, become increasingly emphasized in future leadership practices. The importance of utilizing personnel analytics to anticipate the future and facilitate the implementation of strategy will grow as data collection and analysis advance. (Tourunen 2023.)

Finally, we highlighted the revolution of humanity and the rise of sustainable thinking as the last layer renewing leadership. At the heart of human-centric leadership is, for example, the heartening of strategy, which means creating a strong emotional connection between the strategy and the people. (Kilpinen 2021, 98-99.) Responsible leadership, in turn, considers the well-being and sustainable development of both the organization and its stakeholders. Leaders who implement a responsible leadership philosophy do not only pursue economic profit and efficiency but also strive to act ethically, environmentally friendly, and socially sustainably. (Lassus 2023.)

Human-centric leadership enabling innovative strategic renewal

In fall 2024, we continued the leadership development work and identified key future leadership capabilities in collaboration with our work-life partners at Laurea. Through five future-oriented workshops, we defined the most critical areas of expertise for future leaders. These insights led to the creation of the unique, one-year Future Leadership Expert training program, which began in early 2025. From this development work, we have outlined the essential building blocks for future-oriented leadership as shown in the Figure 2 below.

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Figure 2: The Building Blocks for Future-Oriented Leadership (Maste & Nikkinen 2025)

Reflecting on inner leadership and identifying and skillfully utilizing one’s leadership strengths creates the foundation for successful leadership work. The Inner Development Goals (IDG) framework, which resulted from development work that began in Stockholm in 2019, well illustrates the areas that internal leadership includes: being, thinking, relating, collaborating, and acting. By mastering these areas widely in an organization, inner development scales into systemic transformation – it bridges individual capacities with collective impact. In short, one could state that the main idea in inner leadership is that a leader can develop the outside by developing the inside. (IDG org 2025.)

Empowering and engaging leadership genuinely and autonomously engages people in renewal and innovation. For an organization to renew itself, people must want to learn new things and look at issues from fresh perspectives. Managing learning ability at the individual, team, and organizational levels is one of the most critical responsibilities of a leader, and its role will only become more emphasized in the future. We are moving from managing competence to managing learning (Tanner 2025, 31). In coaching and empowering leadership, humanity is emphasized. A humane leader can individually support their team members’ will, ability, participation, and agency in implementing a jointly created strategy. The strategy is brought into everyday life, encounters, and hearts. (Kilpinen 2021, 98-99.) It is crucial to remember that the future is created together – on organizational as well as on societal level.

In an emotionally intelligent culture, humane leadership is visible in everyday encounters, and the psychological safety of the work community is safeguarded. Talogy nicely divides emotional intelligence into two areas in its modeling: personal intelligence + interpersonal intelligence. It is important to recognize that emotional intelligence starts with valuing oneself and others and thus requires a genuinely adopted humanistic view from the leader. Attitudes and behaviors associated with interpersonal intelligence include inclusiveness, compassion, empathy, and belief in others’ potential. (Talogy 2024, 11.) Luukka (2024, 97) (a Finnish organizational culture expert and author), on the other hand, sees the characteristics of a future-capable culture-driven organization as goal orientation & intentionality, humanity, trust, and courage. When consciously leading organizational culture, it is good to recognize that the process is as important as the outcome in cultural design. It is a great opportunity to get people from different areas to discuss and develop the organization’s culture and identity together. The journey is also an opportunity to strengthen the community. (Tanner 2024, 301.)

Shared leadership enables agility, innovations, and resilience in an organization – the future is created together. In today’s working life, hierarchical organizational structures are being replaced by flexible structures, and autonomous, self-organizing teams are becoming more common. Often, one of the most significant focus areas for a leader is supporting self-direction and, on the other hand, community direction. The goal-oriented management of networks and partnerships also becomes central. Shared leadership is deeply rooted in the Nordic leadership style, characterized by shared responsibility and cooperation.

Strategic renewal capability and foresight require pausing in the moment and looking to the future. It requires strong ambidextrous leadership, where the key to sustainably renewing leadership is the simultaneous effort to both leverage current business opportunities and renew and innovate new ones (Malmelin 2021, 87). To innovate new things, we must have the time, skill, and enthusiasm for creative thinking. The transition from an information society to a thinking society challenges leaders to enable thinking for themselves and their teams. Today and in the future, we are increasingly in leadership situations where we are not just solving problems but grappling with ongoing dilemmas. The world is becoming more complex, and leaders often face conflicting expectations and outcomes when making decisions (Tanner, 2024). Alongside analytical thinking, the importance of systems thinking is emphasized today. We increasingly need systems thinking and systemic leadership, where we lead through genuine interest in people and at the same time are fully aware of the wider context. A leader with a systemic leadership approach enables their team members to be more aware of the larger, complex whole and the diverse impact of their actions on it. (Saarinen 2022.)

The essence of future-oriented leadership

In conclusion, the future of leadership relies on the ability to navigate an increasingly complex and rapidly changing world with a focus on human-centric leadership style and strategic renewal capabilities. In our view, successful future-oriented leadership is based on the Nordic leadership style, which values openness, integrity, and trust and provides a strong foundation for fostering innovation and anti-fragility within organizations. Unlike resilience, which refers to the ability to recover from adversity, antifragility goes a step further. It is the ability to grow stronger amidst uncertainty and change. (Tanner 2025a, 20.)

By integrating creative thinking, emotional intelligence, and a commitment to lifelong learning, leaders can cultivate an environment that supports continuous growth and adaptability. Ultimately, the essence of future-oriented leadership lies in empowering individuals, nurturing inclusive cultures, and strategically aligning organizational goals with societal values. This holistic approach ensures that leaders are not only prepared to face the challenges of tomorrow but are also equipped to drive sustainable and meaningful change.

Authors

Kirsi Maste is an experienced leader, leadership trainer and executive coach who works at Laurea as a Team Leader (Leadership, HR and Law) and Senior Lecturer. She has a proven track record in senior leadership roles across several expert-driven organizations. Kirsi is passionate about human-centered strategy, future-focused responsible leadership, and how megatrends shape leadership thinking.

Marika Nikkinen is a leadership trainer and professional coach (PCC, CPCC) who works at Laurea as a leadership lecturer and RDI manager. Starting from June 1, 2025, she will be a PhD student at Wageningen University within the Education and Learning Sciences Group in the Netherlands. Her research topic is “Sustainable leadership growth through inner development.”

References

URN http://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2025051545090
author's photo.
Kirsi Maste
kirsi.maste(at)laurea.fi
Senior Lecturer
author's photo.
Marika Nikkinen
marika.nikkinen(at)laurea.fi
Senior Lecturer

Human-centricity Inhimillisyys Johtaminen leadership strategic renewal strateginen uudistumiskyky

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