Adapt or fail Why adaptability makes leaders 27x more likely to deliver transformation

Adapt or Fail: What Gate One's Transformation Index Means for Executives

23/09/2025 - Havas UK Advertising Agency, London

New research from Gate One points to a hard truth: most organisations are stuck. Only 22% qualify as leaders in transformation, while 78% are stalling or lagging. The differentiator is clear and measurable-adaptability embedded into systems, leadership, and daily work.

Leaders who build adaptability into how they plan, fund, and deliver change are 27x more likely to land successful outcomes. Strategy isn't the issue; the inability to adapt is.

The Signal Executives Can't Ignore

• 78% are falling short with sluggish progress and mixed results.
• Adaptability is the edge: it correlates directly with delivery, speed, and long-term performance.
• Three core behaviours define leaders:
  • Champion data as a living asset that connects strategy to delivery.
  • Prioritise ruthlessly, sequence change, protect teams from overload, and maintain momentum.
  • Make value visible to customers, employees, and ecosystem partners.

The Leadership Perception Gap

CEOs are the most optimistic: 42% view their organisations as strong in transformation. Chief transformation officers rank far lower-only 10% are seen as leaders, and 43% are considered lagging. This gap signals a deeper problem: misalignment between strategy, funding, and execution.

Sector Standouts and Strugglers

• Leaders concentrated in: Consumer goods (27%) and Insurance (25%).
• Lagging sectors: Energy has only 9% leaders and 35% laggards; Pharma and life sciences see 38% lagging.

AI: Wedge or Accelerator?

AI is splitting the C-suite. 34% treat it as a strategic investment, 39% chase tactical gains, and 20% try to do both. The risk: 45% say AI has reshaped their tech strategy-especially among laggards-hinting that technology is steering decisions rather than business strategy.

Among leading organisations, 73% report AI has significantly accelerated transformation. The pattern is consistent: when AI is tied to a clear strategy and value cases, it speeds up execution rather than creating noise.

Top C-suite Concerns

• The pace of AI evolution (30%)
• Workforce readiness and strategic planning (29%)
• Leadership effectiveness (29%)
• Plus: talent shortages, economic uncertainty, and compliance risks

What This Means for Your 2025-2026 Agenda

• Institutionalise adaptability: Build a change operating system-funding, governance, and cadence that support continuous delivery rather than one-off programmes.
• Treat data as an asset: Define critical datasets, owners, quality standards, and service-levels. Connect strategic KPIs to delivery metrics and dashboards.
• Prioritise like an investor: Sequence initiatives by value, risk, and capacity. Kill or pause work that doesn't move the scorecard.
• Make value visible: Ship measurable customer and employee outcomes every quarter. Publish a value register with benefits owners.
• Right-size AI: Anchor AI use cases to profit-and-loss and cost-to-serve. Build an AI operating model covering data, risk, model lifecycle, and change.
• Close the leadership gap: Align CEO, CFO, and CTrO on targets, capacity, and sequencing. One plan, one backlog, one drumbeat.

A 90-Day Starter Plan

• Week 1-3: Baseline portfolio and capacity; identify top 3 value cases linked to strategic objectives.
• Week 4-6: Stand up an executive change cadence; set guardrails for AI experimentation and data governance.
• Week 7-9: Pilot one AI-enabled use case with clear metrics; publish a value register and delivery dashboard.
• Week 10-12: Re-sequence the portfolio based on early results; scale what works, stop what doesn't.

Executive Perspective

"Our inaugural Transformation Index highlights that their approach is what sets Leading organisations and laggards apart from the rest. They treat transformation not as a one-off event, but as continuous change at scale, aligning leadership around a shared vision, balancing strategic and tactical priorities, and empowering people to drive change," said Ben Tye, managing partner, Gate One. "At Gate One, we see adaptability as a core capability that makes transformation stick. And it's not just about reacting to events. It's about building a mindset, culture and adaptable business architectures for continuous change."

Resources for Leaders

• Research on what drives transformation success
• AI learning paths by job function (for executive and strategy teams)

Bottom Line

Transformation fails without adaptability. Build it into your operating model, prioritisation, data practices, and AI strategy-and make value visible every quarter. The organisations that do this will outpace the rest.