Happy 2025! As we welcome in the energy of a New Year, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the intentions, both personally and professionally, that we’d like to set for our growth in the year ahead. To get you started, I’m sharing a few prompts here below with some thoughts:

What achievements and improvements would define your success in 2025, and what actions, mindset shifts, and skills will you need to develop to get there?
As you work toward these goals, what support systems and resources will you need, and how might you need to reallocate your time and energy?
What potential challenges do you anticipate facing, both internal and external, and what calculated risks will you need to embrace along the way?

We must consider what actions and mindset shifts we need to implement, what skills we need to develop, and what support systems will help us reach our goals in 2025.

These reflections are particularly timely as I share insights from a recent gathering with women business executives, which I co-facilitated with Patty Lian, VP International Strategy at The Estée Lauder Companies, where we discussed how to develop and upskill yourself as a global leader through the lens of The Leadership Pipeline model. This model offers a powerful framework that's reshaping how we think about leadership development across cultures.

As background for those who have not yet been introduced, The Leadership Pipeline is a transformative model, developed by Ram Charan, Stephen Drotter, and James Noel, which offers invaluable guidance for leaders navigating cross-cultural transitions and career advancement - a topic that resonates deeply with me and our community.

The Leadership Pipeline framework illuminates two distinct but equally valuable paths for professional growth. The traditional leadership track progresses through several critical stages: from leading yourself to leading others, then advancing through functional leadership (overseeing multiple departments), business leadership (managing entire operations), group leadership (directing multiple business units), and finally to enterprise leadership (C-suite roles focusing on long-term strategy and organizational culture).

Alongside this, the framework recognizes a parallel specialist track that many of us navigate, which is a journey that moves from one being a professional with solid technical capabilities, to becoming a knowledge expert who solves complex problems and guides peers, and ultimately to emerging as a knowledge leader who shapes strategic direction and influences organizational policy.

What makes both paths fascinating is how they require similar transformations in work values, time usage and skill sets. Each transition demands that one consciously evaluate what to stop, continue, or start doing – often pushing us to develop capabilities that might feel uncomfortable or even contrary to what made us successful previously. For instance, a knowledge leader needs to influence without formal authority, looking three to ten years ahead as a forward-thinking visionary in their domain. They work across different teams to provide leadership at a higher level and set the direction for knowledge development and management, for the whole organization.

Our lively discussion revealed an essential crucial truth about global leadership: what got you here won't get you there. As we move across borders and up the leadership ladder, it’s evident that we need new mindsets and skills are necessary to succeed.

Every participant to the discussion brought different perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences to the table, reminding us that leadership development isn't just about learning new skills – it's about building upon our existing foundations while embracing new challenges. The discussion highlighted how cultural differences can significantly impact leadership expectations and communication styles. For instance, some cultures value humility and indirect communication, while others prize assertiveness and direct expression. Understanding these preferences isn't just about adaptation – it's about creating spaces where diverse leadership styles can thrive, and team members can authentically contribute their best work.

One of the most compelling insights during our discussion was the delicate balance required in global leadership, that is how to leverage the unique strengths and perspectives we bring from our cultural backgrounds while also developing new competencies demanded by our roles and geographical contexts.

Another key revelation was how frameworks help us tackle complex transitions step by step. When facing leadership challenges, these models provide clarity and structure, helping us conceptualize and address problems methodically. As we progress to becoming knowledge leaders, our responsibility evolves from direct action to guiding and influencing the strategic direction of our domains of expertise.

Another takeaway from this discussion was the importance of both internal and external self-awareness in these transitions. As global leaders, we must not only understand our own cultural preferences and biases but also be mindful of how our actions may be perceived in different cultural contexts. Understanding these preferences is key to building a relationship and promoting a mutual win-win. One needs to ask themselves: how can I create these agreements to actually move forward and reach your mutual goals?

I'd love to hear about your experiences and insights as you navigate your own leadership pipeline. Feel free to reach out and share your story, or to explore how I can help support you on your leadership journey.

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Develop & Upskill Yourself as a Global Leader

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