Preparing the Students of Today to Lead the Fortune 500 Tomorrow

Mobile, agile, flexible—these sound like characteristics of a competitive athlete, but they are also likely to be the most vital traits in the leaders of tomorrow. In a conversation at From Day One’s Atlanta conference, Helene Gayle, M.D., president of Spelman College, shared what she’s learned about teaching today’s students since she took the helm of the esteemed women’s HBCU last July. She emphasized the importance of teaching young people how to think critically and continue acquiring new skills in order to prepare them for a rapidly changing world. It’s a perspective that comes from lived experience–Gayle is a pediatrician and public-health physician who worked with the Centers for Disease Control and in the nonprofit sector for decades before entering academia. Future leaders will need to keep an open mind about their career trajectories and become lifelong learners, Gayle said. A Different Generation Spelman is a global leader in the education of women of African descent, a place where those who choose to attend are seeking a college experience where they can focus fully on their studies, Gayle said. “They want a place where there is rigorous academics and also a place that is uniquely there for them,” she said. But these incoming students are a “very different generation” than the alumni that came before them, Gayle told Leroy Chapman, managing editor at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.  “They are very socially-oriented. They care about the planet. They care about the issues of the day, politics,” she said. Today’s students have also experienced soaring rates of mental health and self-esteem challenges and have grown up navigating a fractured digital-information ecosystem.  Gayle spoke with Leroy Chapman, managing editor at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution This generation is “not afraid to express their feelings,” Gayle said. She often receives notes from Spelman students and holds office hours for them to engage with her directly. Some of these discussions can start out confrontational, she said, and while it might be easiest to shut them down, she’s learned a lot by listening. Creating an environment where students feel heard and validated is essential, Gayle said. It gives them a chance to practice communicating their views without halting an argument. “Then we can have a different kind of conversation,” she said. “Listening makes a big difference.” A Culture of Lifelong Learning Listening is an often-overlooked leadership strength in a culture that teaches us the people at the top are supposed to have all the answers, Gayle said. “The more you listen, I think, the better your leadership skills are,” she said. And that ability to learn from the experiences of others is particularly valuable when entering new professional realms. This generation will likely need to change not only jobs but careers multiple times over the course of their working lives. Kids born today may have as many as nine different careers, Chapman said. So how can students prepare now for jobs that don’t even exist yet? College needs to provide young people with the opportunity to be flexible–to learn and try a wide range of things so they know how to develop new skills once they enter the workforce, Gayle said.  “Keep a curious mind. Be curious about the world,” she said, sharing that her own practice of continuous learning includes reading across a wide variety of topics and studying leaders she admires. Higher education should also help today’s students have a much more expansive idea of what a career means, Gayle said. “Keep reinforcing that there is no right way,” she said, so young people are encouraged to maintain their flexibility and agility. “Foster that sense that the world will continue to change and they are part of making those changes happen.” Grace Donnelly is an Atlanta-based journalist covering climate technology for Morning Brew’s Emerging Tech Brew newsletter. Previously, she was a staff writer at the Atlanta Business Chronicle, covering transportation issues, an associate editor for Fortune in New York City, and a member of the award-winning data team at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.