Prepare for 2025: The Five Top Leadership Trends We’re Watching

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2025 is mere weeks away. Are you ready?

After dozens of podcast interviews and hundreds of offline conversations, we have a clear picture of the big concerns trending amongst CEOs and other top leaders. These five top the list.

Geopolitics. With over 70 nations holding major elections in 2024, expect a large number of policy shifts in 2025 globally. No business truly operates in isolation anymore. Take a hard, objective look at the new policies in your government, and the governments of your customers, suppliers, trading partners, and other stakeholders. How will these affect the way you operate, price your goods and services, and compensate your teams? Plan now to avoid disruption. Scenario planning is a very effective tool for this.

BONUS: Disruptions open the door to innovation. How you respond may well reveal the path to a greater opportunity than you had before!

REMEMBER: If the policy changes are substantial anywhere in your chain, there will be a period of economic swings and adjustment; be certain you have the cash reserves to ride them out.

AI and the Changing Nature of Work. Here’s a little secret: most of the world isn’t ready for Artificial Intelligence. (70% of economies are unprepared in this study from Boston Consulting Group, for example.) But that doesn’t mean we’re not using it. Other surveys indicate anywhere from 40% to 60% of office employees are using AI, while their employers still have no official policy about it—much less have formally adopted or developed in-house AI systems.

In addition to remote work, hybrid work, flex schedules, and stark generational differences, AI adoption proves that the nature of work will continue to change in 2025. We continue to believe people won’t so much lose their jobs to AI, but to other people who understand how to use AI well.

Energy and Environmental Disruption. AI gobbles gigawatts of electricity. So much so that Amazon hopes to augment regional electric grids with mini nuclear power stations. Cryptocurrency eats up power, too. Our growing populations do, as well. Utilities balance legitimate concerns of all this overtaxing their infrastructure, so expect growing pains as wind, solar, and, yes, even some nuclear sources come online. Meteorologists and climatologists are certain extreme weather will continue, if not grow, in the coming year, so plan for power outages. Harden your buildings and other assets to prevent losses from disaster, too. (This handy tool from the Washington Post shows how resilient your city is so you can start your planning.)

Leadership Growth. We can all wrap our heads around this one easily. As tech continues to accelerate its growth, the workplace can seem more sterile and less human. This remains a major reason people feel disengaged and continue quitting. The solution: human-centered leadership. Put your focus on your people in 2025. We could list dozens of steps to take, from daily gratitude to mental health programs to bonus pay. But the central step is to be authentic and genuinely care about your people; the actions to take will follow.

NOTE: We’re also seeing a sharp uptick in the art and science of followership. Expect to see more research on this—including how leaders must learn to sit back and become followers of their own teams at times.

The Importance of Mindsets. Resilience and abundance mindsets will be critical components of every leader’s toolkit in the new year. Resilience is obvious: with all the changes and disruptions in the coming year, being able to roll with them and recover clearly benefits you and your team. But abundance? Certainly – disruption always offers new opportunities. Leaders with an abundance mindset are better able to see the opportunities behind obstacles, changes, and chaos. Spot them, innovate, solve them…and instead of reeling, you’ll start thriving.

You’ll find further perspectives on the trends for 2025 in our latest podcast, as guest host Christopher Washington probes the wide-ranging knowledge of our founder (and regular host) Maureen Metcalf. You’ll find it now on Podbean at https://bit.ly/LeaderTrends2025, on YouTube at https://bit.ly/LeaderTrends2025-YT, or search for “Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future” on your favorite podcast platform.

What do you see coming down the pike in 2025? Let us know in the comments. It’s always better when we face the future together.

This article was adapted by Dan Mushalko from our podcast episode Economic & Geopolitical Shifts: The Trends Leaders Need to Know for 2025.

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World-Class Futurist Matthew Griffin Shares His Insights on Business Climate

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Matthew Griffin, a world-class futurist and the founder and CEO of the 311 Institute, a Global Futures and Deep Futures consultancy working across the next 50 years, and the World Futures Forum and XPotential University shared this article as a companion to his podcast Coming Soon to a Business Climate Near You!  

Link to the entire interview:

Listen to the companion interview and past episodes of Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future via Apple Podcasts, TuneIn, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeartRADIO, and NPR One.

In the ever-evolving landscape of global business, the term “VUCA” – an acronym for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity – has become a pivotal concept in understanding the challenges leaders face today. For CEOs and senior leaders across industries and countries, navigating this VUCA world demands a unique set of skills and strategies.

This article delves into how leaders can adapt to and excel in these dynamic conditions.

Embracing a VUCA World: The New Leadership Paradigm

The VUCA environment is characterized by rapid changes, unpredictable challenges, and complex global interdependencies. Traditional leadership models, which favor stability and predictability, are often ill-suited to this new reality. As a leader, it is essential to not only acknowledge this shift but to actively embrace it as the new normal – the new status quo.

Vision: The Compass in Volatility

In a volatile world, a clear and compelling vision is more critical than ever. This vision acts as a guiding North Star, providing direction and purpose amidst the chaos and turbulence. Leaders like Steve Jobs, for example, exemplified this by consistently steering Apple through technological upheavals with a clear vision. Furthermore, a well-articulated vision fosters alignment within the organization, ensuring that everyone is moving in the same direction, even when external conditions are fluctuating wildly.

Understanding: Navigating Uncertainty with Insight

Uncertainty can be paralyzing, but leaders who invest in deep understanding can turn uncertainty into opportunity. This involves not only a keen awareness of market trends and customer needs but also an understanding of the broader geopolitical and socio-economic landscapes. Michael Porter’s concept of the Five Forces Analysis is particularly useful here, providing a framework for understanding industry dynamics and shaping strategy in uncertain times.

Clarity: Simplifying Complexity

In a complex world, simplicity and the ability to simplify becomes your superpower. Leaders must strive to cut through complexity, making it easier for their teams to focus and execute. This requires clear communication, streamlined processes, and decisive action. Ray Dalio’s principles of radical transparency and idea meritocracy, as practiced at Bridgewater Associates, offer an interesting blueprint for fostering clarity and making effective decisions in complex scenarios.

Agility: Responding to Ambiguity with Flexibility

Ambiguity demands agility – the ability to adapt and pivot quickly in response to changing circumstances. This means being open to new ideas, willing to experiment, and ready to abandon old strategies when they no longer serve. Agile leadership is exemplified by companies like Amazon, which has continually evolved its business model to stay ahead in an ambiguous and competitive market.

Building Resilient Organizations: Culture, People, and Processes

Leadership in VUCA times goes beyond individual capabilities. It is about building organizations that are inherently both resilient and adaptable which I sometimes seen as an oxymoron. This involves fostering a culture of continuous learning and innovation, devolving trust and decision making to lower levels of the organization, developing talent that can thrive in uncertainty, and implementing processes that allow for flexibility and rapid response.

Strategic Foresight: Anticipating and Shaping the Future

Leaders must cultivate the ability to anticipate future trends and challenges. This strategic foresight enables organizations to not only react to changes but to actively shape them. Tools like scenario planning can help leaders envision different futures and develop strategies to navigate them effectively.

Ethical Leadership: The Anchor in Turbulent Times

In a world where trust is at a premium, ethical leadership becomes more important than ever. Leaders must set the tone for integrity and ethical behavior within their organizations. This builds trust and credibility, which are crucial for maintaining morale and commitment in challenging times.

Global Perspective: Leading Across Borders and Cultures

As businesses become increasingly global, leaders must be able to navigate diverse cultures, markets, and regulatory environments. This requires a global mindset and the ability to appreciate and leverage cultural differences. Leaders who can think globally while acting locally will be better positioned to succeed in the VUCA world.

Conclusion: Leadership as a Journey of Continuous Adaptation

In conclusion, leading in VUCA times is not about having all the answers. It is about embracing the uncertainty, continuously learning, and being adaptable. Leaders who can inspire with a clear vision, navigate uncertainty with deep understanding, simplify complexity, and respond to ambiguity with agility are the ones who will thrive in this new era. By building resilient organizations, cultivating strategic foresight, maintaining ethical standards, and embracing a global perspective, leaders can turn the challenges of a VUCA world into opportunities for growth and innovation.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Matthew Griffin, described as “The Adviser behind the Advisers” and a “Young Kurzweil,” is a world-class futurist and the founder and CEO of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures consultancy working across the next 50 years, and the World Futures Forum and XPotential University, two philanthropic organizations whose mission it is to reduce global inequality, in all its forms, and ensure the benefits of the future are accessible to everyone, irrespective of their abilities or background. He is also the author of the futuristic “Codex of the Future” series, and the book “How to Build Exponential Enterprises.”

Matthew’s clients include royalty, world leaders, G7 and G20 governments, Accenture, Aon, BCG, Centrica, Credit Suisse, Decathlon, Dentons, Deloitte, GEMS, Huawei, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Qualcomm, RWE, SAP, Samsung, T-Mobile, and many others.

A rare talent Matthew is regularly featured in the global media, including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Telegraph, ViacomCBS, and WIRED, and his ability to identify, track, and explain the impacts of hundreds of revolutionary emerging technologies on global culture, industry and society, is unparalleled.

Recognised for the past six years as one of the world’s foremost futurists, innovation and strategy experts Matthew is an international speaker who helps governments, investors, multi-nationals and regulators around the world envision, build and lead an inclusive, sustainable future.

 

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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

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Check out the companion interview and past episodes of Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future on your favorite podcast platform, including Apple Podcasts, TuneIn, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, iHeartRADIO, and NPR One.