The Expert Guide to Transformational Leadership in Retail

These days, it is hard to ignore the ubiquity of the term “transformation.” When coupled with “leadership,” it takes on a slightly different focus. Despite being a lofty goal, “transformational leadership” is often still too vague to be realistically implemented, and certainly, a challenge for most retailers to do well. We felt it is important to hone the phrase to resonate exclusively with the retail industry and discuss “transformational leadership in retail.”

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the development and in some cases maturation of retailers’ transformational leadership capabilities because companies and leaders simply had to become more resilient. They were forced to adapt to unprecedented realities, and that resiliency continues to be necessary. Particularly for the retail industry, where “front line” store associates must interact face-to-face with consumers daily and consumer demands are ever-fickle, resiliency and adaptability must be included and strengthened in the transformational leadership toolkit.

In this expert guide, we will discuss the definition, importance, roles, best practices, and challenges associated with transformational leadership in retail.