Leading through change: what are the skills that matter? Part 1: Vision and adaptability

The skills and knowledge that leaders need are changing just as quickly as the world around us. Happily, they can be learned, and the best leaders are already working out how. Leading well through change has always come down to human capabilities that can be developed, practised and learned from people who have already lived the experience firsthand.

Borrowing a phrase from a recent Newsweek panel on navigating transformation, effective leadership in times of disruption comes down to vision, adaptability and courage: the ability to make bold decisions amid risk and turn challenge into opportunity. We think that’s a useful shortlist, so this piece looks at the first two, vision and adaptability. And we will publish a separate article on courage.

Vision: making sense of a fast-changing landscape

Vision starts with seeing clearly. If you don’t really understand the change that is happening, then it stands to reason that you can’t lead a team or organisation through it. Reading the political, economic and social forecast is a key part of the job, whatever sector you work in.

Alex Massie is one of Scotland’s best-known political journalists and commentators, offering sharp, independent analysis of UK politics, the constitutional debate and global economic trends. His clarity is invaluable to audiences who really want to understand what is happening and what it might mean for them.

Owen Wyatt, Chief Growth Officer at DC Thomson, is an excellent speaker on business growth, trust, resilience and the UK economy from the perspective of someone steering a large organisation through these conditions while navigating change. He speaks about growth when everything around us is moving (arguably the only kind of growth there is just now).

Adaptability: leading through the AI shift

If vision is about seeing the change, adaptability is about moving with it, and no change is asking more of leaders right now than AI. It has arrived and is gaining pace fastest and creating the most questions. The leaders handling it well are the ones working to understand its capabilities as well as its limitations, and treating it as a human agenda as much as a digital one.

Laura Willis is one of the UK’s leading voices on human-centred AI adoption and digital wellness. She helps organisations and their people think deeply, work sustainably and embrace AI with clarity and confidence in an always-on world, which is the kind of grounded promise many leaders need.

Somi Arian works at the intersection of AI, finance, investment and economic transformation as a filmmaker, entrepreneur and technology commentator. She helps leaders understand where the technology is taking us, rather than just believing the hype.

And Jamie Bartlett, technology writer and broadcaster, focuses on how AI is changing the way we work, think and behave. He has immersed himself in the world of AI and can help us understand how to use it productively and to spot when it’s getting things all wrong.

Have a look at our leadership speakers, or get in touch and tell us what your next event needs to do. We will help you find the voice that fits.