June 26, 2026 - More than 700 business leaders across industries and geographies report that economic uncertainty, talent shortages, AI adoption, and accelerating transformation are converging into a single, more intense leadership challenge, according to Kestria's second annual global leadership survey. The findings show most organizations are highly aware of the disruption, yet many struggle to build the leadership depth and execution capability that the moment demands.
The survey surfaces a world where organizations are not confronting isolated problems. Leaders now manage multiple, interlocking pressures at once. The Kestria report said, "Economic uncertainty, competitive intensity, workforce capability, technology adoption and changing stakeholder expectations are all converging simultaneously. This is creating an environment where leadership is becoming less about managing stability and more about operating effectively amid continuous disruption."
Respondents pointed to economic uncertainty, talent acquisition and retention, digital transformation, operational resilience, and competitive pressure as the most significant leadership challenges. More troubling, a large share of those surveyed indicated the same challenges have grown worse over the past year. The escalation in both pace and complexity means traditional leadership built on predictability and long planning cycles is harder to sustain, and organizations need leaders who can make decisions quickly, adapt strategy in real time, and lead through ambiguity.
Leadership expectations have shifted accordingly. Leaders are now expected to meet operational targets while simultaneously driving transformation, maintaining culture, responding to workforce pressures, and preparing the organization for future shocks. That balancing act is becoming heavier.
The Readiness Gap
One of the survey's sharper findings is that awareness has not translated into preparedness. More than 60% of respondents said they feel less prepared, or only similarly prepared, to address these challenges compared to a year ago. The Kestria report explained, "In many organizations, leaders understand the nature of the disruption. They understand the importance of digital capability, workforce transformation and organizational agility. However, translating that understanding into meaningful organizational capability appears to be more difficult."
Strategy development often outruns capability building. Many organizations know what they need to do but falter at the pace of execution. As a result, leadership effectiveness is increasingly defined not by strategic thinking alone but by the ability to align people, systems, culture, and resources around sustained transformation.
Leadership Talent Scarcity
Demand for stronger leadership capability has risen, yet nearly a quarter of organizations report reduced success in attracting leadership talent. The market has become more competitive, and the expectations placed on leaders have expanded. Organizations no longer look simply for technical or operational expertise; they seek leaders who can lead transformation, manage diverse teams, navigate uncertainty, and integrate technology and people strategies simultaneously.
Even global organizations appear cautious about aggressively pursuing offshore leadership talent. A significant proportion prefer local candidates or do not proactively source internationally, which may unintentionally limit access to broader leadership capability as shortages intensify. The data suggests organizations may need to rethink traditional leadership pipelines and adopt more flexible approaches to sourcing, internal capability building, and succession planning.
AI Shifts from Technology to Leadership Issue
AI has moved squarely into the leadership domain. Roughly two-thirds of organizations report having a developing AI strategy or responding reactively; fewer than 15% describe a fully integrated AI approach. The barriers are telling. They include insufficient internal capability, difficulty moving from strategy to execution, cultural resistance, and competing organizational priorities. The report said, "These are not primarily technology problems - they are leadership and organizational change problems."
About a third of surveyed organizations rely on external consultants to support AI capability development, while roughly half try to upskill existing employees. The Kestria report noted that organizations likely to succeed in AI implementation will be those able to integrate technology, culture, leadership, and workforce capability into a coherent transformation strategy. For executives building that integration, structured resources such as AI for Executives & Strategy can help address the leadership dimension of AI adoption.
DEI: Commitment Outpaces Execution
Diversity, equity, and inclusion remains a priority. More than eight in ten respondents maintained or increased their emphasis on DEI over the past 12 months, with gender, race and ethnicity, and generational diversity as major focus areas. Yet many organizations still struggle to embed inclusion into leadership systems and accountability.
While some organizations hold leaders accountable for inclusive behaviors and outcomes, over a third describe inclusion as encouraged but not consistently measured. Others say it depends heavily on individual leaders. The Kestria report said, "This highlights an important distinction between commitment and operational integration. The issue is less about awareness and more about sustained execution and accountability."
The Defining Differentiator: Execution
Across all these areas, the same underlying theme emerges: execution capability is becoming the dividing line. The Kestria report put it directly: "Execution capability is becoming the defining differentiator. Organizations that can align leadership, culture, workforce capability and strategic execution are likely to be far better positioned than those relying primarily on reactive or fragmented responses."
Leadership itself is changing. It is no longer about setting direction within relatively stable environments. Increasingly, it is about helping the organization absorb complexity, adapt continuously, and maintain trust through turbulence. The most effective leaders will be those who balance short-term operational demands with long-term transformation while preserving organizational resilience.
The survey's closing insight underscores that competitive advantage in the years ahead will hinge less on strategy alone and more on the ability to execute consistently under pressure, adapt quickly, and develop leadership capability that can operate effectively in complexity.
Why this matters for Executives and Strategy
The survey makes clear that awareness without execution discipline leaves an organization vulnerable. Executives who treat AI, talent, and inclusion as separate initiatives rather than integrated leadership challenges will widen the readiness gap. Building the internal systems that convert strategy into action-especially around AI-is now a core leadership function. For senior leaders, structured programs like the AI Learning Path for CEOs offer a direct way to develop the strategic and operational skills needed to close the execution gap and lead through continuous disruption.
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