{"id":38530,"date":"2026-01-14T14:52:50","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T14:52:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/?p=38530"},"modified":"2026-05-06T16:22:56","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T15:22:56","slug":"ring-in-a-new-year-and-a-new-type-of-leader-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/ring-in-a-new-year-and-a-new-type-of-leader-in-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Ring in a New Year\u2014and a New Type of Leader\u2014in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Maxted Neal<\/strong> is\u00a0Academic Director for BSc PEP, Professor of Practice in Psychology, Senior Director for Student Development at Hult London.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Disruption is the new normal. Today\u2019s increasingly complex problems require a new class of leader to help solve them. But how do you learn to lead for the future amidst constant change?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We live in a <\/span>BANI <\/span><\/b>world. Never heard of it? Let\u2019s take a step back.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The world has always been full of problems. Human creativity offered the solutions, advancing humanity and globalization, ultimately shaping today\u2019s interconnected world. But modern interdependence brings with it new complexity and new challenges, like climate change, geopolitical instability, and unprecedented technological advances.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Today\u2019s leaders need to bring new tools and skills to the fight.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Leadership for a changing world<\/span><\/b>
\nOur current leadership models were created last century to help solve the problems of the time. Now, we need an updated blueprint\u2014a new skillset to meet the challenges of today.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2026, we face a turning point as educators and business leaders.<\/span> We must guide tomorrow\u2019s leaders to shift their perspective on the world, shedding siloed thinking and moving toward an <\/span>interdisciplinary approach<\/span><\/b>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

New leaders will have to <\/span>make sense of problems<\/span><\/b> rather than simply solve them. They\u2019ll need to <\/span>value the intelligence of the collective<\/span><\/b> over that of the individual, and they must <\/span>understand emotions<\/span><\/b> rather than suppress them. Beyond all else, tomorrow’s leaders will need the <\/span>core human skills<\/span><\/b> to apply these tools to complex problems.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This holistic, more human framework is needed to address the serious complexities of today\u2019s world. Education and leadership models must adapt to foster the leaders and thinkers tomorrow’s world needs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Education for the future<\/span><\/b>
\nAt Hult, we\u2019ve created a degree to do just that. Our<\/span> Bachelor\u2019s in Psychology, Economics & Politics<\/span><\/b><\/a> is designed to produce thinkers who can understand how people and groups think and behave, how organizations interact with and shape economic systems, and how nations, societies, and the planet are governed.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We believe this blend of disciplines will produce a generation of students who are able to engage with and solve 21<\/span>st<\/span>-century problems.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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From VUCA to BANI: How the world has become more complex<\/span><\/b>
\nAt the end of the Cold War, the US Army War College introduced the VUCA framework. <\/span>Volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous<\/span><\/b>\u2014VUCA became the standard for strategic leadership training, emphasizing agility, resilience, and decision-making amidst unpredictability.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Since then, widespread changes, including globalization, the internet boom, and a global financial crisis have shifted the foundations of business and society. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated these changes. During that period, Futurist Jamais Cascio argued that we\u2019ve moved beyond VUCA into BANI: <\/span>brittle, anxious, nonlinear, and incomprehensible<\/span><\/b>. Today\u2019s world presents a mix of both. And traditional approaches to leadership are no longer fit for purpose.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So, what does it mean for a problem to be both VUCA and BANI? And what new skills will future leaders need? To put this into context, let\u2019s take a practical and applied look at one of the greatest threats facing the modern world: <\/span>climate change<\/span><\/b>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Case in point: Climate change\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Climate change is VUCA<\/span><\/b>
\nClimate change is <\/span>volatile<\/span><\/b>, as extreme weather events can happen suddenly and without warning. It\u2019s <\/span>uncertain<\/span><\/b>: events we once called \u201conce in a lifetime\u201d are occurring with unpredictable frequency. Weather systems are incredibly <\/span>complex<\/span><\/b>, with interdependent components touching every aspect of human life from security to transport, politics, and health.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Climate change is <\/span>ambiguous<\/span><\/b>. Responsibility is unclear and diffuse, and some question whether climate change is even happening at all. There is no one clear source to blame, and effects seem disconnected from day-to-day life. (Just watch someone post \u201cWhat happened to global warming?\u201d on social media the next time it snows.)\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Climate change is BANI<\/span><\/b>
\nGlobal supply chains are increasingly <\/span>brittle <\/span><\/b>in the face of climate-related disruption. In 2022, droughts in China led to hydroelectric rationing and factory shutdowns, devastating the semiconductor supply chain.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Climate <\/span>anxiety <\/span><\/b>is a widespread and growing problem for young people. Changes in the climate are <\/span>nonlinear<\/span><\/b>, with their effects spiking at tipping points, be that the collapse of an ecosystem or a rise in sea levels.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, climate change is <\/span>incomprehensible<\/span><\/b>. The mechanisms and actions of climate change are not intuitive. Humans were not built to think about problems that are not directly in front of them. The scale of the climate as a system, the distant effects, and the timespans involved mean that solving the problems of climate change require new thinking.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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New tools for future changemakers<\/span><\/b>
\nClimate change is not an isolated example of this type of problem. The proliferation of AI, misinformation, propaganda, shifting geopolitical tides\u2014these issues and many more define our modern world. The scale, complexity, and uncertainty of today\u2019s problems can feel insurmountable.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

However, the right people with the right tools can build a thriving, prosperous, safe, and secure world.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tool one: Sensemaking<\/span><\/b>
\nThe first of these tools is the ability to <\/span>make sense rather than simply find a solution<\/span><\/b>. <\/span>Complicated <\/span><\/i>problems have solutions\u2014they simply need a problem solver. <\/span>Complex <\/span><\/i>problems, on the other hand, need sense makers: people who understand that asking the right questions is more important than finding immediate solutions.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Leaders need to determine what is <\/span>really <\/span><\/i>happening: what is signal and what is noise, what is an assumption and what is a fact, and how different people might see things differently.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rather than providing a source of truth, <\/span>leaders must be comfortable with not knowing<\/span><\/b>. Impulsive rushes to action and solutions create a premature illusion of certainty, which is often more dangerous than a temporary acknowledgment of ambiguity.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tool two: Thinking beyond disciplines<\/span><\/b>
\nEffective sensemaking requires the ability to <\/span>think outside of silos and disciplines<\/span><\/b>. Traditionally, organizations and academia have produced thinking in narrow fields of expertise. Degrees have been awarded in specific subjects and organizations arranged around functions. This is a great system for solving complicated, discipline-specific problems. But for <\/span>complexity<\/span><\/i>, answers are found across, rather than inside, silos. <\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s go back to climate change. You can’t understand climate change without understanding:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n