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Every technological revolution brings with it management change. The rise of automation in the 1980s, for example, led to process reengineering (stripping out unnecessary steps to shorten timelines). Now with the dawn of AI, the next wave of organizational and leadership change is upon us. Ron Carucci, a consultant and researcher on leadership and organizations, and Kathleen Hogan, Microsofts former chief people officer and its newly appointed EVP of the Office of Strategy and Transformation, have identified what they believe are four of the most fundamental shifts that leaders and organizations must consider to be future-ready. Paid subscribers will learn: How to redefine career progression by impact, not rank The most important trait that talent teams need to look for when hiring Why AI will render the org chart a thing of the past The three things Microsoft is looking for from every manager to train future leaders 1. From change management to change readiness Less than a decade ago, best practices in change management involved carefully structured communication and stakeholder plans, phased rollouts with meticulous timelines, and well-resourced implementation strategies. This approach was built on the assumption that leaders knew in advance both the changes they needed to make and the precise destination they wanted to reach. But today, change arrives so quickly that there is often no time to define a fixed endpointlet alone build a road map to get there. The new reality requires a shift from managing change as a project to developing a culture where change-readiness is an everyday capability. To create this shift, leaders must first embrace a change-ready mindsetone that sees change as a continuous state rather than a series of isolated events. This means hiring and developing employees based on their ability to learn and adapt, not just their current expertise. At Microsoft, being a positive pivoter means embracing change as the new norm instead of seeing it as a hardship. This means rewarding adaptability and resilience, shifting away from valuing stabilitykeeping things under controlas the ultimate leadership virtue. Beyond mindset, leaders must also empower employees to actively drive change rather than passively waiting for direction. Rather than managing change top-down, leaders should coach employees to anticipate and shape it. This requires breaking down rigid structures and creating cross-functional teams that identify disruptions early and respond with agility. Finally, organizations must embed change as an everyday practice rather than a temporary initiative. Leaders should normalize experimentation and foster learning from failure. At Microsoft, leaders have been prepared for this under Satya Nadella, where challenging ones fixed mindset is a daily habit. For example, as Microsoft wrestled with how to win in AI, we had to challenge the fixed mindset that we had all the answers. When we shifted to a growth mindset we embraced the opportunity to bring in outside perspectives and ideas. In the last year weve added three new externally hired executives to Satyas leadership team to enable the push into AI. 2. From hierarchical leadership to agile networks In the past, organizations relied on well-defined hierarchies where leadership influence was dictated by reporting lines, and decision-making authority was concentrated at the top. This model created stability, but at the cost of agility, as decisions had to travel up and down a chain of command before action could be taken. In todays fast-moving environment this rigid structure has become a liability. The future demands a shift toward agile, networked leadership, where decision-making is based on expertise, not hierarchy, and teams dynamically form and reform to tackle challenges as they arise. To build this new model of leadership, organizations must move beyond traditional org charts to foster fluid, networked governance structures. One organization Ron consulted with, developed innovation hubs focused on specific product and customer segments. Each cross-functional group was assigned a specific innovation focus, given resources, and empowered to make go-no go decisions on their projects right up until prelaunch. This dramatically reduced the time it took to complete projects because it eliminated relying on hierarchical decision-making for approvals. In one year, they increased their successful product launches by 46%. 3. From leadership as control to leadership as coaching For decades, leadership was synonymous with creating order from chaos. The assumption was that strong leadership meant exerting control over ambiguity. However, today, uncertainty is no longer an occasional disruption, but a constant state. Future-ready leaders must embrace uncertainty and develop coaching mindsets to help employees navigate complexity with confidence. This shift begins with redefining leadership as coaching rather than controlling. Replace rigid performance reviews with real-time feedback that drives continuous improvement. Balance accountability with empathy, ensuring that expectations remain high (with clear measurable goals) while employees feel psychologically safe to take risks, experiment, and grow. Microsoft has declared this year of intensified uncertainty and transformation as the year of the coach. Microsoft has identified three competenciesmodel, coach, careas foundational to managers at all levels. Weve learned candid coaching is care. Role modeling what it means to give thoughtful, clear feedback as well as acknowledging personal shortfalls earns the permission to candidly coach. All people managers will have access to communities with tools and training to improve their coaching skills. They will also be able to exchange feedback. This will be particularly critical as AI agents become a regular part of managerial life. Managers will need to understand how to coach people to harness irreplaceable human assets like relationship building, empathy, and creativity. Equipping leaders with strong coaching skills is essential in this new paradigm. This means training managers to ask the right questions rather than simply providing answers. It also requires setting and exceeding the bar for meeting customers evolving needs. 4. From status as power currency to contribution as impact currency In many organizations, career progression has long been tied to status, measured by titles, reporting structures, team size, and invitations to high-level meetings. Employees have traditionally viewed promotions as the primary means of increasing their impact. But in an era where speed, collaboration, and expertise matter over rank, the future of leadership must be based on influence and contribution, rather than job titles. To create this shift, companies must redefine career growth and progression by rewarding employees for impact rather than hierarchy. Instead of promotions being the primary way to acknowledge high performers, companies should design pathways where employees can expand their influence by leading initiatives, shaping critical decisions, and contributing to strategic problem-solving, regardless of their title. Leaders should invite those with relevant expertise into key discussions, regardless of rank. This also requires rewarding horizontal collaboration, where employees who bridge silos and drive cross-functional innovation are recognized and valued. In one organization transformation, Ron helped a global financial services company redesign how key leadership meetings were handled. Originally, the company invited attendees to the meeting based on their rank. In the new approach, each attendee was assigned a role with clear expectations. Afterwards, everyone in the room was expected to cascade key messages and decisions. This eliminated the entitlement that senior leaders often display when its their turn to join the important meetings. Instead of, I deserve to be here because Im a senior vice president, leaders showed up with a broader understanding of how they could create success together. By centering contribution over hierarchy, organizations will create a culture where the most capable and impactful employees thrive, decision-making is faster, and leadership pipelines are built on merit rather than tenure. As the world of work continues to shift, leaders will do well to guide their organizations toward more adaptive structures that allow leadership to happen at all levels, and enable faster and more creative responses to market opportunities. Its time to leave behind outmoded approaches to leading and organizing human endeavors.
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E-Commerce
Im a drummer with a soft spot for vintage snares. I own a few that rarely get played. They sound great and look even better, but they take up space. If I kept collecting more, Id eventually have to give up something else: chairs, food, clothes, books, art. No matter how practical I claim these drums are, theyre bulky objects that sit idle for most of their life. When it comes to city building, Americans struggle to apply that same basic interior design logic to personal vehicles. The magical thinking is that 10 pounds of Motordom can fit in a 5-pound bag. Country living, suburban living, and city living are not interchangeable. You should be free to choose whatever suits you best, including the kind of vehicle you want to drive. But cities have a constraint that rural areas and the suburbs dontphysical space. There simply isnt enough room for every household to store multiple personal vehicles out front, let alone build the number of lanes so that everyone can drive in the same direction at the same time. {"blockType":"creator-network-promo","data":{"mediaUrl":"","headline":"Urbanism Speakeasy","description":"Join Andy Boenau as he explores ideas that the infrastructure status quo would rather keep quiet. To learn more, visit urbanismspeakeasy.com.","substackDomain":"https:\/\/www.urbanismspeakeasy.com\/","colorTheme":"salmon","redirectUrl":""}} Automobile storage centers Despite that physical reality, most American cities have been engineered as massive automobile storage centers. This isnt a value judgment about driving. Its a spatial critique. Cars are large objects that sit idle 95% of the timeand when cities prioritize motor vehicles over everything else, its inevitable that housing, parks, and commerce get squeezed out. Every time a road is widened, space for people walking, rolling, and riding bikes shrinks. Intersections balloon, making crossings longer and more dangerous. Parking garages devour valuable land. Building cities around the automobile is an absurd and wasteful decision that leaves cities congested, expensive, and less livable. The worst part is that it doesnt even work. Expanding roads to solve traffic only invites more people to make trips they wouldnt have made. (The wonky planning term is induced demand.) When you make solo driving easier, more people drive solo. The new lanes fill up, and the traffic jams return. Places of exchange Cities are places of exchange: goods, services, ideas, and relationships. That exchange requires spacenot just for people to live, but to move, meet, flirt, play, rest, buy stuff, sell stuff, or just plain linger. Building cities around peopleinstead of machinesdelivers places people want to be. Like any interior designer knows, good design isnt about cramming more furniture in an already-packed room. Its about prioritizing what makes the space work for the people using it. Here are three proven strategies for applying that same mindset to your citys public realm. 1. Stop forcing developers to build car storage. Minimum parking mandates are among the most damaging policies in city planning. These rules require developers to build a set number of parking spaces regardless of context or market conditions. A local government might require 150 parking spaces for a 100-unit apartment building near high-frequency transit. The rulemakers dont care if its easy to opt out of owning a car. These mandates inflate construction costs, reduce housing supply, and crowd out other uses. Let the property owners decide how much parking makes sense. American cities already have abundant housing for cars. 2. Expand your view of pedestrians. Frequent and reliable bus service is an express sidewalk. Think of bus routes as part of the walking networkan option you use when the weathers bad, your bags heavy, or your legs are tired. That mindset shift helps normalize transit as a default mode of movement, not a last resort. Engineering solutions like dedicated lanes and signal priority help keep the buses from being stuck in traffic. The more the bus feels like a moving sidewalk, the more people will choose it. 3. Make bike rides pleasant. A connected bike network is one of the most cost-effective ways to increase mobility and reduce congestion. Especially now, with the rise of e-bikes, a 5-mile ride becomes a breeze even for older adults. E-bikes flatten hills, reduce sweat, and make iffy weather more manageable. Build protected bike lanes that link destinations (residential areas, job centers, retail corridors, etc.). Build secure parking and charging stations for electric cargo bikes. Make biking the most attractive option for short trips. Cities shouldnt be treated like storage units for large piles of personal property. If you wouldnt let stacks of idle drum kits block your kitchen, dont let oversize metal boxes dominate your streets. Good urban design, like good interior design, serves the people who live there. {"blockType":"creator-network-promo","data":{"mediaUrl":"","headline":"Urbanism Speakeasy","description":"Join Andy Boenau as he explores ideas that the infrastructure status quo would rather keep quiet. To learn more, visit urbanismspeakeasy.com.","substackDomain":"https:\/\/www.urbanismspeakeasy.com\/","colorTheme":"salmon","redirectUrl":""}}
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Finding a job is hard right now. To cope, Gen Zers are documenting the reality of unemployment in 2025. You look sadder,” one TikTok post reads, flipping the recent You look happier trend on its head (in which people respond with the real reason theyre smiling a little more than usual). @yasamelon “Thanks, yeah, I’ve been laid off since September, applied to 700+ jobs, 30+ interviews, no offers, and rent is due again,” the post continues. The video has over 783,000 views, with many commenting they are in the same boat. Being unemployed in 2025 means spending half the day on Linkedin and the other half walking around town looking for a Waymo to run me over, the same creator jokes in another video. @yasamelon everybody say waymoooo original sound – Yas For many job seekers, their unemployed status is not for lack of trying. Some are busy testing out different job hacks and documenting the results. Others are posting day-in-the-life videos of unemployment, highlighting the harsh reality of searching for a job in the current climate. I think the new Hot Girl Summer is actually gonna be Unemployed Girl Summer, one TikToker says. Even the recruiters are weighing in. I am still shocked how many people in my comment sections are underestimating how cooked the corporate job market is, one recruiter explains in a recent video, currently at 617,400 views. Ive literally never seen candidates struggle as much as they are right now. @the_realest_recruiter It seriously blows my mind #jobmarket #jobsearch original sound – TheRealestRecruiter The comment section is filled with those sharing their own experiences and frustrations with the job search and current hiring processes. Ive come to the conclusion that most job board sites are nothing but data-mining operations, one person writes. I had to send in my birth chart (wish I was kidding), comments another. The data backs it up: It hasnt been this hard for Americans to find work since 2021, according to CNN. While new data released Thursday showed that initial claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, the number of recurring claims made by people who already have filed for unemployment rose to their highest level since November 2021. Rather than conducting mass layoffs, employers are reining in hiringleaving unemployed job seekers with the short straw. CNN also reported that people are staying unemployed for about six months on average, with long-term unemployment (27 weeks or more) nearing a three-year high. Faced with such dire circumstances, some are choosing to look for a silver lining. As one TikTok post reminds: Enjoy your unemployed era while you still can. Or at least try to.
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E-Commerce
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