Formal definitions aside, management is what you do when you are responsible for influencing others and have experience that is directly relevant to the task, process and journey. In a nutshell, you know “what good looks like” and can literally begin with the end in mind. You have a track record that screams, “I have been there … I have done that (or something very similar) … and I can do it again!”

Conversely, leadership is what you do when you have responsibility for influencing others and find yourself forging new territory. There is no road map. There is no “Destination Assist.” There is only “thin ice” and/or “forks in the road.” Your circumstances are governed far more by your instincts than they are by your base of documented experience.

Consider those distinctions as you peruse a sampling of recent business trends identified by Deloitte:

• In 1990, approximately 45 percent of the world’s population lived in extreme poverty. Today, that number is roughly 20 percent. By 2030, that number is projected to be less than 3 percent:
  • One of the many effects of this migration is that roughly one billion additional consumers will be entering the marketplace around the world in the next 15 years.
• Developing economies have contributed substantially more to Global GDP than the developed economies for more than a decade:
  • Developing economies – Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC)
  • Developed economies – United States, United Kingdom, Germany and Japan
• Global GDP is commonly defined as the cumulative monetary value of all the goods and services produced within a specified period of time
  • The emerging economies are fast approaching the contributions of the developed economies.
  • Emerging economies – Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey (MINT)
• From 2012-2015, the total global social media audience increased by an estimated 57 percent from 1.47 billion to 2.307 billion. This means that roughly 31 percent of the world’s population is actively using online social networks with that number continuing to trend upward at a rapid rate:
  • Of Facebook users, 75 percent are outside the United States
  • Of LinkedIn users, 30 percent are in Asia
• Market leaders from the developed and emerging worlds are seeking to learn from each other like never before in an effort to master a multi-dimensional game:
  • Emerging market leaders often have a better understanding of customers in the fastest growing parts of the world.
• The number of North American companies in the Fortune Global 500 fell from 215 in 2001 to 127 in 2015. The number of companies on the list based in Asia (excluding Japan) increased from 30 to 115 during the same time period

It is difficult to imagine that, at some point and in some manner, these trends won’t directly impact us all (if they haven’t already). Beyond that, it is at least within the realm of consideration that when they do, our base of direct experience may be of limited or no discernible value (i.e., “haven’t been there … and have never done that”).  This notion was explored in detail in the June 2015 issue of Harvard Business Review titled “21^st Century Talent Spotting.”

So, what’s the implication?  “Net-net” (and with ever increasing regularity) our collective futures lie in the hands of leaders at every level, of every organization, that will need to:

1. Unleash an almost insatiable curiosity for the unknown.
2. Accurately assess emerging circumstances (at breakneck speeds).
3. Develop customized responses that reflect those assessments.
4. Articulate those strategies in a manner that advances the cause.

These sorts of dynamics either energize you—or they engulf you.