The Skills Emerging Leaders Need to Develop
The essential skills for emerging leaders, organised into four categories: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management. Research-backed guide with practical frameworks.
🎓 Monash Business School|🏆 AACSB Recognition 2018|📊 8,000+ leader reflections|✅ 88-93% completion rate
About this research
8,000+ leader reflections collected over five years. Participants span technology, industrial services, healthcare, and non-profit — from ASX-listed companies to 65-person organisations.
Methodology co-developed with Professor Anne Lytle, who spent 30 years teaching leadership at Kellogg, Melbourne Business School, and Monash University (Professor and Director of Leadership). Her research background in neurobiology (Cornell) and organisational behaviour (Kellogg PhD) shaped the science-based approach.
Technical expertise gets people promoted. But technical expertise doesn't make them effective leaders.
60% of new managers never receive any training when transitioning into leadership.
This article covers the skills that matter most for emerging leaders, organised into four categories: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management. For each skill, we'll share what the research says, what leaders actually experience when they try to develop it, and how to build it deliberately.
The Four Skill Categories
Leadership skills fall into four categories, building on each other:
- Self-awareness — Understanding your own emotions, triggers, and impact
- Self-management — Regulating your responses and behaviours
- Social awareness — Reading others and understanding their perspectives
- Relationship management — Working effectively with and through others
Self-Awareness
Self-awareness is the foundation everything else is built on. It's understanding your emotions, reactions, strengths, and weaknesses — and how they affect the people around you.
Why It Matters
46% → 29%
Trust in managers collapsed between 2022 and 2024. One of the key drivers: managers who lack awareness of their impact on others.
Leaders who aren't self-aware don't realise when they're creating stress for their team.
What Leaders Experience
My mood right now is curious. I have been looking after myself more and so have more energy to learn and be curious about different things.
— Leader in our program
In our data, leaders often start by describing their emotions in vague terms: "fine," "busy," "stressed." As they develop self-awareness, they become more specific: "frustrated because I feel unheard," "anxious about the deadline but confident in the approach."
Where Leaders Get Stuck
Many leaders intellectualise their emotions rather than feeling them. They can analyse why they might be stressed without actually noticing the physical sensations of stress in their body.
Skills to Develop
- Emotional self-awareness: Understanding your emotions as they happen and recognising their impact on your thoughts and behaviour.
- Accurate self-assessment: Knowing your strengths and limitations. Being open to feedback. Learning from experience.
Self-Management
Self-management is what you do with the awareness you've built. It's regulating your emotions, adapting to circumstances, and maintaining effectiveness under pressure.
Why It Matters
71% of leaders report significant increase in stress since stepping into their role.
What Leaders Experience
I was stressed about the audit numbers, and I thought it was not going to get completed in time.
— Leader reflecting on a pressure situation
The Mindshifting Framework
Leda's Mindshifting framework gives leaders a four-step process for managing their stress response:
- Catch — Notice the rising stress response.
- Calm — Three deep breaths.
- Choose — Reframe the situation as a challenge or opportunity.
- Connect — Share the experience with others.
Where Leaders Get Stuck
Many leaders think self-management means suppressing emotions. It doesn't.
Skills to Develop
- Emotional self-control: Managing emotions and impulses under pressure.
- Growth mindset: Seeing challenges as opportunities to learn.
- Resilience: The ability to recover from setbacks.
- Focus: Controlling attention in a world of distractions.
Social Awareness
Social awareness is turning the lens outward. It's understanding other people — their emotions, perspectives, needs, and concerns.
Why It Matters
11X more likely to trust their manager when they listen and respond with empathy.
What Leaders Experience
It felt good to give them the opportunity to express themselves.
The Empathy Framework
Empathy involves three core skills:
- Connection — Building trust and rapport.
- Perspective-taking — Seeing someone else's point of view.
- Compassion — Genuinely caring about others as human beings.
Where Leaders Get Stuck
The biggest barrier to social awareness is the assumption that you already understand.
Skills to Develop
- Empathy: Understanding others' emotions and perspectives.
Relationship Management
Relationship management is where leadership happens. It's working effectively with and through others to achieve results.
Why It Matters
70% of engagement variance comes from the manager.
The Six Relationship Management Skills
1. Team Building
Creating the conditions for a group of people to work together effectively.
2. Developing Others
Helping each team member grow. Setting goals, coaching performance.
3. Giving Feedback
Communicating about actions or behaviours that affect performance.
4. Communication
Exchanging information effectively. Listening actively.
5. Conflict Management
Addressing disagreements and tensions productively.
6. Building Team Culture
Shaping the environment in which work happens.
How These Skills Are Built
These skills share something in common: none of them can be installed in a workshop.
What This Looks Like in Practice
Leaders develop these skills over months, not days. They practice daily. They reflect on what's working and what isn't. They receive feedback and adjust.