Thursday's Leadership Insight: Do We Need a New Leadership Theory for the 21St Century? No! We Need a Framework for Leadership Development

One's leadership journey is a continuous inside-outside process of growth and development. It doesn't matter where you are in the journey; you may be just starting, in the middle of your career, climbing the leadership learning ladder in your organization, or you may be transitioning and looking back on your life and legacy as a leader.

Either way, you are on a journey that requires you to learn to develop yourself as a leader every day. This path to developing oneself as a leader is unclear in the turbulent world facing leaders today. The path to becoming an effective leader is very murky today. It reminds me of the conundrum of choosing a path when facing a young girl named? Alice. This scene is depicted in Lewis Carroll's book Alice in Wonderland, written in 1865. Alice In Wonderland is lost and is at a fork in the road. She asks the Chesire Cat for advice: "Would you please tell me which way I ought to go from here?"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,' said the Cat.'I don't much care where -' said Alice.'Then it doesn't matter which way you go,' said the Cat.'- so long as I get SOMEWHERE,' Alice added as an explanation.'Oh, you're sure to do that,' said the Cat, 'if you only walk T."

This scene describes the state of leadership development in the world of 2025. In too many organizations or leadership programs, there is little thought to the path, an intentional framework for developing and improving as a leader in one's leadership practice. This lack of clarity has led to reliance on mythology and misunderstanding of what leadership is. The lack of examples of effective leadership intensifies the lack of clarity. Leadership expert John Maxwell noted in a presentation on his 2024? book High Road Leadership that he had significant concerns for the youth of today as they were growing up. His worry was not about them as people. To the audience's amazement, it was about the lack of high road /positive leadership examples available to them as they were developing. The lack of clarity can also be seen in the proliferation of 6-7-8 step theories on how to be a great leader. This can lead to an overreliance on a specific theory or set of plug-and-play beliefs or a formula that actually hinders one's leadership development. This comes as we have the growing concern of a rise in protectionism at a time when leaders need to be more word-focused. A 2018 Gallup report noted that indeed, as Thomas Friedman asserted in his 2005 book on globalization,?The World Is Flat, the world is getting increasingly flatter. Technological advances have shortened the distance between countries, businesses, and employees. Expanding economic and intellectual power has led to the need for truly global leaders. However, few companies offer?emerging leaders?the scope of experience they'll soon need. According to a study by the American Management Association,?48% of organizations?consider developing global capabilities in their leaders to be a top priority. What's worrisome is that?only 18% of multinational companies?say they have the solid global leadership pipeline necessary to meet their future business challenges.

?I often hear in coaching and training sessions that we need a new 21st-century leadership theory. In its March? Quarterly Journal, McKinsey and Company state that" the shortcomings of command and control management are becoming ever more apparent. The hierarchy of bosses is organized into ranks, with each superior exercising authority over subordinates who do exactly what their bosses want, which has long been the dominant form of corporate organization. In too many sectors, there is little thought to an intentional framework as a process for developing one's leadership practice. The emphasis here is not based on a particular leadership theory one should follow.

?This Thursday's Leadership Insight discusses some of the myths hindering leadership today. The emphasis is not on a particular leadership theory one should follow but on a different approach to rethinking leadership based on a specific framework of leadership development: the Three Cs. The Core of Leadership is the Content skills needed in any leader's context.

The central premise of this article is that The 21st Century's rapidly evolving workplace doesn't require a new leadership theory. What is needed is the dismantling of outdated myths and adopting a flexible, evidence-based framework. For decades, leadership development has been hindered by persistent misconceptions that stifle innovation and engagement. These myths are very powerful hindrances to the truth of 21st-century leadership reality. John F Kennedy, in a 1963 Yale commencement address, explained the power of myth. "For the great enemy of truth is very often not the lie--deliberate, contrived, and dishonest--but the myth--persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic. Too often, we hold fast to the cliches of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought. Mythology distracts us everywhere--in government as in business,"

By replacing these myths with a leadership development framework of the?Three C's of Leadership—Core,?Content, and?Context—organizations can cultivate adaptable, purpose-driven leaders ready to meet modern challenges.

Five leadership myths holding leaders ?back and the truth are below.

1.?? Leaders Are Born, Not Made This myth ignores decades of research showing leadership is a learnable skill. The choice to develop one's leadership practice is through learning, experience, mentorship, and self-reflection. These are not innate traits. The challenges of the 21st century demand leadership development at all levels. As John Quincy Adams said, "If your actions inspire others to be more, learn more, and become more, you are a leader. "This is seen in many organizations like the US Armed Services, yet it is not widespread.

2.?? Leaders Must Have all the answers High-performing teams thrive on collaboration, not omniscience. Gallup's Q12 research on workplace engagement reveals that employees are 3.5x more engaged when leaders solicit input and foster problem-solving throughout the organization.

3.?? Leadership is not a title. Command-and-control styles reduce creativity and diminish trust. 21st-century leadership prioritizes empowerment over hierarchy, which aligns with McKinsey's finding in their March 2025 McKinsey Journal on leadership that inclusive teams outperform peers by 35%. Google's 2012 study of teams would replicate this data. Project Aristotle found that groups that developed norms, structure clarity, diversity, aligned purpose, psychological safety and trust, and held themselves accountable were more successful than other groups.

4.?? Leaders should never show vulnerability. The "never let them see you sweat mindset "isolates leaders from their teams. Authenticity builds relationships of connection and engagement, and it is earned through trusting relationships and psychological safety. Studies cited by the Marshall Goldsmith organization report that employees are 1.7x more likely to innovate when leaders admit mistakes and model growth.

The illiterate of the 21st Century will not be those who can not read or write; the Illiterate of the 21st Century will be those who can not learn, unlearn, and relearn."

Alvin Toefler

5.?? One leadership style fits all: Our continuing volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA.)Context dictates a need for vision, understanding, and agility. Learning and adaptability are crucial. As Alvin Toefler said in Future Shock, the illiterate of the 21st Century will be those who can not read or write; the Illiterate of the 21st Century will be those who can not learn, unlearn, and relearn ".The leadership style works in education, and a tech startup may fail in healthcare. Adaptive leadership, which is human-centric and is not based on rigid formulas, drives success. Mark Miller, in Smart Leadership, reminds leaders that leadership is a choice to build people up and get things done. Stephan Covey's The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is the most read work on self-leadership, yet it never espouses a specific theory, just growing in self-leadership. This is also true in the 97plus leadership books written by John C. Maxwell.

"leadership is a choice to build people up and get things done."

Mark Miller.

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The Three C's Framework: A 21st Century framework of leadership development

1. Core: Values, Purpose, Motivation and Mindset A leader's?core?is foundational to self-leadership and guides one's leadership practice.in values n the leaders Why "or purpose, motivation, and mindset . John Maxwell emphasizes that "leadership is not about titles but influence" rooted in character. Gallup's Q12 studies of engagement underscore this: employees who connect their work to a larger purpose are 4x more engaged435. The Core of leadership is the foundation for all leadership development. It is crucial to all a leader does and rarely changes in all contexts. The Core is the rudder of leadership practice. Thomas Jefferson explained it well: "In matters of style (content ), swim with the flow (context); in matters of principle, stand like a rock."

2. Content: Skills required for today's challenges Content?includes both "hard skills" and technical expertise (e.g., AI literacy, machinery, etc.), as well as soft skills" like learning and reflection coaching and utilizing relationship building and team can spur culture development through emotional intelligence. McKinsey notes that 87% of leadership development fails without skill application in real-world contexts. Gallup reports in an article entitled? When Leaders Thrive, So Do Organizations that reflective practices and continuous learning are key traits of "learning leaders" and boost team productivity by 21%

3. Context: Adapting to the Environment Leaders must interpret and respond to cultural, technological, and economic shifts. For example, Gallup's research shows that all work, especially hybrid work, demands more explicit expectations (Q1: "I know what's expected of me") and growth opportunities (Q12: "I have opportunities to learn").?Context-aware leaders, as McKinsey advises in a 2017 article What's missing in leadership development?, align strategy with situational needs, increasing agility. Leadership and generational diversity expert Tim Elmore writes in The Eight Paradoxes of Great Leadership: Embracing the Conflicting Demands of Today's Workplace.That current context of leadership is paradoxical. For example, Leaders must be timely (current )and Timeless( based on core values, purpose, motivation, and mindset(The Core)

Five Benefits of the Three C's Framework

1.?? Enhanced Adaptability Leaders prepared for VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) environments pivot strategies without losing sight of core values764.

2.?? Higher Employee Engagement connection and learning Gallup links clarity (Core), skill development (Content), and contextual alignment to 40% reductions in turnover and 21% profitability gains.

3.?? Stronger Decision-Making A purpose-driven Core reduces ethical missteps, while contextual awareness prevents misaligned initiatives2

4.?? Continuous Learning Culture Content-focused skill-building fosters innovation. These programs must equip tech skills and develop building guiding soft skills. This culture focuses on the choice to build people up and get things done. This influences thinking, acting, and interaction.McKinsey found that organizations prioritizing learning transfer see a 3x return on investment with a deliberate, intentional focus on growing leaders in leadership programs.

5.?? A predictable, scalable leadership development pipeline Frameworks grounded in Core/Content/Context allow consistent development across levels, addressing what 71% of CEOs cite as their top challenge: leadership gaps

The 21st Century Framework of leadership development

The way forward in the 21st Century, as Toefller said in 1975, is to learn, unlearn, and relearn. This is how the Three C's framework of leadership operates. Adopting the Three C's framework isn't theoretical. The framework is a scaffold for any leadership development program. The framework is grounded in a core of values, purpose, motivation, and mindset with a focus on content skills needed in the Context of the time. It is a practical approach to the choice of building people up and getting things done. As leadership expert John Maxwell asserts, "Everything rises and falls on leadership." By anchoring development in timeless values, adaptable skills, and situational awareness, organizations build leaders who inspire?and?deliver results. The future belongs not to myth-bound managers but to leaders who choose to stand by their Core and learn Content skills to adapt and serve in the Context of their time in leadership practice.

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The Leadership questions for you are

1. Will you choose to use the three C's framework in your leadership practice?

2. Will you choose to use the three C's to develop other leaders?

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