Flexible Leadership and Human Resources Role in Managing Change in the Post-Covid Era: Experience from the University System

Abstract

This paper focuses on flexible leadership and human resources management roles in organizational change, particularly in the post-covid era and post-covid change management in the university system. An extensive review of the literature was done to identify the various leadership styles, the role of human resources management in the selection, development, and deployment of the appropriate organization leadership, and the leadership role in effective change management. Flexible leadership was identified as strategic and capable of effectively implementing the needed change to manage business operations in the post-covid era. Flexible leadership involves consistent organizational change management to remain relevant in the face of competitive forces and contemporary issues, like the COVID-19 pandemic. The university system also requires flexible leadership for the desired change, not only in identifying the needed human resources but also in the required quantum and appropriate mix of the human and infrastructural resources, to enable it to continue to compete well in the furtherance of its knowledge dissemination goal. This paper concludes that flexible leadership seems to be the best form of leadership required to manage unforeseen continuous change effectively. The role of human resources management is also crucial in identifying and developing employees with such leadership traits.