We’re living in a time of compounding complexity. As leaders, we’re being asked to navigate environments that are more volatile, uncertain, and fast-moving than ever before. And yet, many organizations are still operating with a traditional model of leadership—one that was built for predictability, not complexity.
I was recently at ATD25, where I had the opportunity to attend a session by Joe Folkman of Zenger Folkman. His session, “The Adaptable Leader—6 Ways to Thrive During Unprecedented Change,” offered a compelling look at the skills most strongly correlated with adaptability in leaders. As he walked through the data, I found myself nodding—not because the findings were surprising, but because they confirmed what I’ve come to deeply believe: we need a fundamentally different way of operating as leaders.
Here’s what Joe shared.
The skills most correlated with adaptability included:
- Collaboration and teamwork
- Building relationships
- Valuing diversity
- Communicating powerfully and prolifically
- Displaying high integrity and honesty
- Inspiring and motivating others
- Developing others
In contrast, the skills least correlated with adaptability were:
- Technical or professional expertise
- Driving for results
- Customer and external focus
- Developing strategic perspective
Take a moment and reflect:
Which of these two lists sounds more like how most leaders operate today?
For most, it’s the second list. And that’s the problem.
These less-adaptability-oriented skills align with how we’ve traditionally defined effective leadership—through a lens of expertise, efficiency, and execution. But in today’s reality, these skills, while still valuable, are insufficient. They may have served us in stable, predictable environments. But in a world that is constantly shifting beneath our feet, they no longer enable us to thrive.
The Deeper Problem: Outdated Operating Systems
To make sense of this, we need to think about leadership through the lens of vertical development—the process of evolving the internal operating system of a leader so they can handle greater complexity, uncertainty, and change.
Most leadership development focuses on horizontal development—adding new knowledge, skills, or competencies. But horizontal development only helps someone do what they already do a little bit better. It doesn’t elevate how they see, process, or engage with the world.
Vertical development, on the other hand, is about transformation. It’s about expanding one’s capacity for meaning-making, perspective-taking, and adaptability.
In my vertical development model, there are three primary “mind levels” that represent increasing levels of leadership sophistication:
- Mind 1.0: Self-preservation oriented – safety, comfort, and belonging are the priority.
- Mind 2.0: Self-focused achievement – success, status, and results drive behavior.
- Mind 3.0: Purpose-driven contribution – leaders operate from a place of shared purpose, inclusion, and long-term transformation.
(For more on this model, check this out.)
The traditional leadership model—the one that over-indexes on technical expertise, driving results, and strategic positioning—is deeply rooted in Mind 2.0. This is where the vast majority of leaders (around 85%) operate. It’s not that it’s wrong—it’s just limited in its capacity to meet today’s demands.
The more adaptability-focused skills that Joe Folkman identified? Those are markers of Mind 3.0. And right now, only about 8% of leaders operate at this level.
This gap is not just theoretical—it’s the source of real dysfunction in organizations. Leaders operating from Mind 2.0 can unintentionally create environments of competition over collaboration, compliance over commitment, and short-term wins over long-term value.
If we want our leaders—and our organizations—to thrive in the face of rapid change, we must elevate how they operate. We must help them upgrade their internal operating systems so they can become more agile, inclusive, emotionally intelligent, and visionary.
So, What Can You Do?
If you’re a leader—or responsible for developing them—here are two critical steps to begin this transformation:
- Take the Vertical Development Assessment
This assessment is designed to help you gain clarity about the level of sophistication you currently lead with. It’s a powerful first step in becoming more self-aware, and it provides the insight necessary to begin vertical growth. - Use the Vertical Development Framework to Elevate Your Leaders
If you want to create a culture of adaptability, resilience, and innovation, this framework gives you the blueprint. Use it to identify where your leaders are, where they need to be, and how to help them get there.
The bottom line is this:
The traditional model of leadership is no longer enough. It’s time we let go of outdated paradigms and embrace a new, more human-centered and adaptive approach. Our future depends on it.
Want to bring more vertical development efforts into your organization? Let’s connect.
