Leading through social distancing: The future of work, corporations and leadership from home

Abstract

At this critical juncture when the COVID-19 health crisis has disrupted our ways of living, working and relating to each other, we are perforce to explore and co-create the Future we want to be part of. Drawing upon feminist theory, we introduce the notion of ‘inclusiveness’ as a fresh conceptualization of the impact of meaning rendering from working, almost irrespective of where work takes place. The ‘new (ab)normal’ that is emerging, is challenging the future of corporations not only in fulfilling their purpose, but also in leading the future leadership necessary to restore the balance between the economy and ecology. In this respect, the corporation is more than a workplace, and leadership is more than a relational process. Inclusive leadership, as we will elaborate when ‘leading from home’, invites us to rethink social distancing and remote working as a platform for rebuilding the fundamentals of humanity. We propose an agenda for leading on leadership in co-creating the future of work and corporations by outlining themes as well as an approach to connecting that no longer separates research and business practice.