I'm really looking forward to delivering this presentation. I know it's going to be pretty quick and jam-packed with lots of hopefully useful information. This is something I’ve been passionate about for at least 20 years since forming Agility Consulting—writing about it, sharing insights, and helping organizations apply these principles. Some of you may have received an article I recently wrote about Leadership Agility Fitness.
Let's move forward and put some context around why we’re even talking about leadership agility. I think you can see—and it’s certainly been discussed throughout this conference—COVID-19 has been a major disruptor for everyone. Small, medium, and large organizations alike have all been affected. But the reality is, COVID-19 is not the only disruption we’re seeing. Digital disruption, virtual work, cybersecurity, the gig economy—these are all forces reshaping the way we work.
A term that has been widely used for the past decade to describe this environment is VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous). About ten years ago, I wrote an article titled Leadership Agility: A Business Imperative for a VUCA World. The business imperative I outlined back then is just as relevant today—if not more so.
One of the key questions organizations need to ask in this "new world of work" is: How does work get done? Who does it? Where is it performed? These questions are challenging leaders at every level, and leadership agility is a crucial solution.
To explain this concept in a way that’s easy to understand, I like to use a fitness metaphor. Think about the five key components of physical fitness: muscle building for strength, aerobic fitness for endurance, flexibility through stretching, sleep for recovery, and balanced nutrition.
Just like physical fitness, leadership agility requires a balance of multiple capabilities. You can’t just focus on one area—being strong isn’t enough if you don’t have endurance, flexibility, or proper recovery. The same is true for leadership agility, which is built on five key components. We call this the AGILE Model, and as you’ll notice, it spells out A-G-I-L-E:
- Anticipate Change
- Generate Confidence
- Initiate Action
- Liberate Thinking
- Evaluate Results
Leadership agility applies to leaders at all levels—executives, project managers, business unit leaders, supervisors, and even Agile coaches. Just like physical fitness, leadership agility requires all five elements to be at an optimal level.
Applying Leadership Agility in Real Life
Let me give you an example of how this model applies to both personal and professional life. I live on the coast of North Carolina, which means I frequently have to prepare for hurricanes. If you look at the spaghetti models used for hurricane tracking, you’ll see predictions about where the storm might make landfall. The destruction that hurricanes bring depends on their category, wind speed, and trajectory.
To apply the AGILE model to this scenario:
- Anticipate Change: Track weather patterns, monitor the storm's path, and determine its potential impact.
- Generate Confidence: Work with my family to make preparations—secure outdoor furniture, gather supplies, and ensure we have a plan.
- Initiate Action: Act quickly rather than waiting until the last minute.
- Liberate Thinking: Get creative—like filling bathtubs with water in case of a power outage.
- Evaluate Results: Assess whether our preparations were sufficient and learn from any mistakes for future storms.
Now, let’s take a deeper look at each of these leadership agility components in a business context.
1. Anticipate Change
Leaders must focus on identifying future trends and signals that indicate change. This involves trend analysis and foresight. For example, in the early days of COVID-19, we saw signals that the virus was spreading. The question became: How fast? How far? How severe? The organizations that anticipated change and took proactive steps had a significant advantage.
2. Generate Confidence
Confidence isn’t just about self-assurance—it’s about building confidence within your team, employees, suppliers, and stakeholders. Many companies faced supply chain disruptions during COVID-19. Leaders had to work closely with suppliers and employees to manage expectations and maintain engagement.
3. Initiate Action
It’s not enough to recognize change—you must take action. Many companies get bogged down in decision-making hierarchies, delaying critical moves. Agile leaders empower their teams to make decisions quickly and effectively, ensuring speed and collaboration.
4. Liberate Thinking
Innovation requires leaders to encourage creative problem-solving. How do we think outside the box? What are our customers telling us? How can we adapt quickly to shifting needs?
5. Evaluate Results
Agile leaders don’t just act—they measure success. This means setting clear goals, gathering real-time feedback, and using facts to guide decision-making.
Leadership Agility Trends
Over the past 20 years, we have studied thousands of leaders and their agility levels. The weakest area we consistently see is anticipating change. Most leaders focus on reacting rather than proactively identifying future challenges. The key to leadership agility is shifting that mindset—preparing before disruption strikes.
Leadership Agility Fitness Levels
Just as with physical fitness, we assess leadership agility across five levels:
- Fragile Leaders: No strengths in any of the five AGILE capabilities.
- Emerging Leaders: Developing some agility but inconsistent.
- Adaptive Leaders: Strong in some areas, but gaps remain.
- Resilient Leaders: High capability in most areas.
- VUCA Masters: Strong in all five AGILE capabilities, able to navigate uncertainty effectively.
Assessing your agility is critical. In this presentation, I’ve included a 15-item self-assessment that you can use to determine where you currently stand in your leadership agility journey.
Case Study: Turner Broadcasting
A great example of this model in action is Turner Broadcasting (CNN, TBS, etc.), which embraced leadership agility as part of its five-year transformation. They implemented leadership agility 360-degree assessments, trained internal coaches, and developed high-potential leaders. This became a core element of their cultural and mindset shift toward agility.
Final Thoughts
Continual learning is key. That’s why I’m publishing a book through the Business Agility Institute titled The Book of Masters: Developing Leadership Agility Fitness for the New World of Work. It will be available in Q1, and I hope you find it valuable for applying leadership agility in both your professional and personal life.
Thank you for your time, and I look forward to further discussions!