Leadership imperatives for thriving in a chaotic world

In an era where volatility isn’t a passing storm but the new climate, the leaders who thrive are those who can read the waves, not fight them.

At a recent closed-door conversation with senior HR leaders, one question sat at the heart of the discussion: What does leadership look like in a world where the future refuses to sit still?

Riding the Waves: Leadership in Stormy Waters

In an era defined by structural (not temporary) disruption, the concept of “business as usual” has vanished. Leaders today face overlapping crises: accelerating AI adoption, workforce fragmentation, economic pressure, and geopolitical instability. Volatility isn’t a bump in the road anymore; it is the road.

Session host, Frédéric Groussolles, Partner at Heidrick & Struggles used a striking metaphor to describe three types of leaders navigating the “stormy waters” of today’s business environment:

• The Struggler: drowning in a sea of information, moving from one crisis to the next.
• The ‘Superhuman’: fighting the waves with relentless energy, only to burn out.
• The Surfer (or the Speedboat): harnessing the power of the waves, directing energy rather than depleting it.

Others framed leaders as “the one with the compass” – those who bring direction amid uncertainty, and “the lighthouse” – a steady, guiding presence leading others through chaos.

This reality is forcing organizations to rethink what leadership readiness means, how they plan for succession, and how they sustain performance in unpredictable times. The challenge is to maintain or shift behaviors to embody the “Surfer” profile.

Thriving in a Chaotic World

For many organizations, the pandemic was the great revealer. It exposed not only operational fragility but also the limits of traditional leadership models.

Measures of success have evolved: from efficiency and output to purpose, learning, and vitality.

Thriving leaders today demonstrate what Heidrick & Struggles call  “The Connecting Leader” mindset: a balance of courage, future vision, delivery in the present, and a learning mindset. They harness the power of others, orchestrate ecosystems, and create clarity amidst complexity.

Connectivity, as highlighted in Heidrick & Struggles’ research, is increasingly essential for leaders and organizations alike. A leader’s ability to connect person to person, both within and across their organization’s ecosystem, is crucial, particularly during times of transformation. These connecting skills build trust, helping leaders ease concerns and foster alignment as new technologies and ways of working emerge.

Rethinking Leadership in the Age of AI

Traditional management (delegation, people development, performance tracking) is evolving into what Groussolles described as AI orchestration: optimizing AI systems, ensuring accountability, and enabling human-AI collaboration.

AI is average. It’s not creative, it predicts what’s most probable. It can take care of the basic stuff, but it won’t replace value-added work. The people who can apply what they’ve learned in new ways will always have a place.”

The challenge and opportunity is how to reinvest the “time back” gained through AI efficiency. The leaders in the room saw potential not only for four-day workweeks or increased productivity, but for dedicating time to learning, ESG initiatives, and innovation.

As one participant put it,

We need to ask: what can we do with the time we’re about to get back? How do we reconnect with the business and reinforce our value. Not by doing more, but by doing what matters most?”

To harness AI’s potential and drive meaningful change, HR leaders must do more than adopt the technology; they must cultivate the leadership skills required to help their organizations embrace transformation. This means connecting data from across departments, collaborating with tech and analytics teams, and working with external partners to accelerate AI maturity.

This shift demands a new kind of fluency, encapsulated in the APEX framework:

• Automation Mastery – Understanding, configuring and optimizing AI-powered workflows.

• Process Oversight – Ensuring AI-driven processes are efficient, aligned with business goals, and measurable.

• Ethical Governance – Managing AI responsibly, ensuring compliance, fairness, and risk mitigation.

• eXpotential Thinking – Leveraging AI for future-proofing, innovation and strategic impact.

The success of AI in HR will hinge on a leader’s ability to navigate complexity while maintaining humanity, ensuring AI serves both organizational goals and employee needs. HR leaders who rise to the challenge of upskilling themselves and their teams will best prepare their organizations for the future.

From Surviving to Thriving

In times of turbulence, leadership clarity becomes a competitive advantage. Top-performing companies consistently demonstrate three characteristics: clarity of direction, simplicity in execution, and talent-excellence.

The future of leadership won’t be defined by those who can predict the next disruption but by those who can navigate it. The organizations that thrive will be led by those who combine foresight with humanity, structure with agility, and culture with accountability.

Because in unpredictable times, the true test of leadership isn’t survival, it’s how you surf the storm.