No leader needs to be reminded of the pace of change facing businesses today—it has become the new norm. And yet, most are still learning how to help their organization to keep up.
According to Deloitte’s 2026 Human Capital Trends Report, only 7 percent of leaders say they are adept at helping their workforce grow and adapt continuously at the required speed. Bridging that gap comes down to leadership, argues Deloitte Consulting managing director David Mallon.
“To enable true agility for their people and businesses, leaders need to embrace what we call changefulness,” says Mallon. This means “embedding continuous learning, real-time feedback and in-the-moment support directly into the flow of work.” In an interview, Mallon shares more insights from the report—how HR leaders and their organizations can manage the pace of disruption, and help shepherd their workforces through it.
It seems like businesses are experiencing several changes at once. From your perspective, how are companies adapting today, and what role do leaders play in ensuring their people become truly agile?
Constant change is the operating norm for organizations. In the face of this, Deloitte’s 2026 Human Capital Trends Report found that most business leaders cite being fast and nimble as their primary competitive strategy over the next three years. Yet, while an adaptable workforce is key to developing organizational agility, only 7 percent of leaders say they are adept at helping their workforce grow and adapt continuously at the required speed.
This is where leadership plays a pivotal role. To enable true agility for their people and businesses, leaders need to embrace what we call changefulness, embedding continuous learning, real-time feedback and in-the-moment support directly into the flow of work. This way, leaders can help people adapt as priorities shift, skills evolve and technology advances, channeling constant changes into opportunities rather than disruptions.
There’s been a lot of debate about whether AI initiatives are delivering real ROI, and that very few organizations are succeeding at unlocking long-term productivity gains. What are these companies doing right?
Our data shows most organizations still treat AI like previous technology advancements, meaning they layer AI onto legacy processes. This approach is misguided, as AI is fundamentally different than previous advancements—it contextualizes, learns and adapts, producing different outputs even with the same input.
Our 2026 Human Capital Trends Report makes clear that the organizations seeing real ROI on their AI investments are redesigning work around human–machine interaction. The results speak for themselves, as organizations that redesign work around AI, rather than layer AI onto existing processes, are 2.5 times more likely to report better financial outcomes and twice as likely to say they are providing meaningful work.
When redesigning roles, the first step for leaders is to establish clear governance and strategy principles, while thoughtfully shaping how AI supports specific roles, teams and tasks. Ultimately, leaders that keep human well-being front and center, remain deliberate about choosing the right type of interaction between people and machines, and leverage AI to amplify the unique capabilities of humans are well-positioned for success.
As humans work more with machines, what should CHROs focus on when it comes to organizational culture?
While there’s a real focus on AI improving organizations’ bottom line, there isn’t nearly as much attention being paid to how technology is reshaping workers’ experience. In fact, 42 percent of workers say their organizations aren’t evaluating AI’s impact on people, which erodes organizational culture and slows AI transformation.
For CHROs, there’s a clear imperative to shape culture in lockstep with AI, something 65 percent of organizations believe is important. Leaders can start with clearly defining and communicating what’s acceptable, fair and ethical with AI, as well as actively building trust in AI during the flow of work.
Moreover, AI itself can strengthen culture by offering personalized coaching, delivering targeted learning and sharing insights for peer-to-peer recognition. CHROs who intentionally address the cultural implications of AI transformation are poised to unlock an advantage that technology first thinkers are missing out on.
What systems or guardrails around AI can leaders put in place to ensure that their people still have agency when it comes to decision-making?
According to our 2026 Global Human Capital Trends report, 60 percent of executives say they now regularly use AI to support decision-making. While new technologies can accelerate critical decision-making, they can also diminish leaders’ and employees’ sense of accountability and ownership.
To prevent a loss of accountability, organizations need to treat decision-making as a strategic discipline, which requires clarity around which decisions truly matter, who is responsible for them, what data should guide them, and how much uncertainty or risk is acceptable when AI is involved.
At the same time, it calls for deliberate design of human–AI decision models to optimize the balance of human agency with machine autonomy, with clear governance that defines when AI provides recommendations, when it can automate decisions, and when human judgment must prevail, supported by strong oversight mechanisms such as escalation protocols, audit trails and ethical reviews.
Equally important, leaders should invest in reinforcing human judgment rather than ceding it. By equipping managers and leaders to critically assess AI-generated insights, overseeing its use and retaining final authority, organizations can ensure AI strengthens, rather than undermines human reasoning and responsibility.
With these guardrails in place, organizations can unlock faster, higher-quality decision-making at scale while maintaining trust and preserving human agency.
