I recently worked with a global pharmaceutical company in the animal health space during a week of political uncertainty—tariffs had been announced, but no one knew whether they applied to their industry. And yet, their leadership team didn’t flinch. They showed up, ready to lead without clarity. That moment captured a deeper truth: stability isn’t about knowing what’s coming anymore. It’s about being ready for whatever comes.
Our old playbooks—point A to point B, reorgs and roadmaps—don’t hold up in a world that shifts by the week. The real differentiator today is an adaptive culture. Our research with Stanford proves it: organizations with adaptive cultures saw 49% revenue growth over three years—far outpacing every other culture type. Why? Because transformation today isn’t linear. It’s ongoing. It’s uncomfortable. And it demands that leaders stop “fixing” change and start cultivating agility as a core capability.
That’s what I also told Schwab Network after the March jobs report: the numbers might’ve looked strong, but the market didn’t care. Why? Because behavior follows story—not data. And right now, the dominant story is fear. Trade wars, policy confusion, uncertainty fatigue. That’s why the smartest leaders aren’t trying to predict the future—they’re preparing their people to adapt to it.
Which brings me to Shopify. CEO Tobi Lütke recently told employees that using AI isn’t optional—it’s mandatory. He tied it directly to performance reviews. That’s not just a policy. It’s a culture shift. And it raises a question every leader should be asking: are you fostering curiosity and resilience, or just hoping employees keep up on their own? Because agility isn’t built by mandate. It’s modeled, reinforced, and made real through culture.
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