As 2026 kicks off, and the world becomes more uncertain, leaders face increasingly complex and evolving demands. At NKD, we know that this new era will require resilience, adaptability, and innovative strategies to navigate uncertainty successfully. From putting middle managers in the spotlight, human-centred AI adoption initiatives, and sustaining psychological safety – discover how senior leaders can guide their teams through the challenges of the future in our latest blog, Getting ahead of the curve: Leadership focus in 2026.
Disengaged workforces and how we’re failing middle managers
How disengaged managers create disengaged workforces
Disengagement is a continuing trend dragging into 2026. Gallup estimated in their State of the Global Workforce 2025 report that 79% of employees are disengaged at work, with the main cause being a drop in manager engagement. Middle managers take the company strategy and translate it into daily actions for people, so it’s only logical that manager engagement has a domino effect – engaged managers inspire engagement in others. But we can’t underinvest in them and expect them to overdeliver. Neglecting their development means overall engagement suffers.
So it’s only right that developing your frontline leadership is top of the list heading in to 2026.
The power of coaching skills
Multigenerational workforces are expecting more from their organisations than ever before, and our middle managers are feeling the pinch. The pressure on them to slot in where teams need them, often as therapists and community-builders, is very real. With command and control leadership repelling younger workforces, coaching skills are emerging as a must-have for managers. It’s an actionable place to start developing your managers, so that they can redirect their focus from counsel to company strategy. In fact, we know that coaching skills are the leadership superpower. Don’t believe us? Harvard Business Review argues that “coaching is integral to the fabric of a learning culture —a skill that good managers at all levels need to develop and deploy.” They say that the role of the manager is becoming ‘that of a coach’. An organisation with managers and leaders able to coach means that each individual will have a better chance to perform to their highest potential, and what could be better than that? Really, it all goes hand-in-hand with a human-centred approach to leadership.
AI in the workplace
AI as a cultural shift
More and more employees at all levels are using AI in the workplace, some by choice and some by design. Not only does this change require the obvious policies and guardrails around AI usage, but it also requires human-centred leadership that genuinely puts people at the centre, not technology. For us, leadership is at the heart of AI adoption – AI isn’t just a technological shift, it’s a cultural one. That’s why prioritising cultural transformation initiatives this year just makes sense.
We developed ‘Welcoming AI’ because we know a growth mindset and successful AI adoption are tightly intertwined. ‘Welcoming AI’ helps explore that by building confidence amongst teams and giving practical, human ways to embrace AI with enthusiasm. Wherever you’re at on the scale, from AI sceptic to enthusiast, it creates a level playing field for employees to learn from each other.
Human-centred AI adoption
Forbes also champions the ‘human’ approach, labelling it ‘Humanity Beats Hype’, saying that people connect with thought leaders who are human, vulnerable, and grounded. In 2025, AI adoption brought about more than 50,000 job losses in the US alone, but this should be a temporary shift as AI should actually create more jobs than it eliminates. Hyundai Motor Group have even pledged investment in the US that’s expected to create 25,000 jobs from 2025 to 2028, building a future where technology serves humanity.
Change, rather than loss, will be the overriding theme of 2026. And those new roles? Some will be powered by technical skills like engineering and data science, and some by a radically human skill set – “soft skills” such as communication, coaching, and inspiring leadership – skills that machines can’t replicate. Great leadership has the ability to actively draw great jobseekers in. Increasingly, employees are seeking out organisations that are values-aligned, and led by truly authentic leaders who lead by example. If you don’t know where to start with leading AI-empowered teams, we’ve developed a solution exactly for this. It’ll help prepare you for leading in this new chapter of the world of work.
Psychological safety
The impact of a psychologically safe workplace
With less and less DEI initiatives rolling out, psychological safety in the workplace is on the decline. Sadly, the number of employees that feel they can bring their whole selves to work has nosedived since 2024. On the contrary, employees’ desire to work in supportive and empowering environments hasn’t. If anything, it’s grown. More than 75% of employees say they’re more likely to stay long term if their employer supports diversity, equity and inclusion.
Cultivating a psychologically safe workplace boosts employee wellbeing, performance, and engagement, as well as creating space for innovation to emerge. When individuals feel safe enough to try, fail, and try again, organisations can truly progress – but innovation needs the human infrastructure behind it to succeed: psychological safety, openness and trust.
Trust as a driving force
We’re a big believer that trust is a driving force for innovation. If we’re going to throw people in the deep end and encourage them to get curious, explore, and create, we must trust them. Harvard Business Review argues that psychological safety ‘provides a powerful organizational salve for stressful times.’ And with the uncertainty of today’s world – AI anxiety looming over workforces, geopolitical tensions, and economic unpredictability, doesn’t psychological safety sound exactly like the soothing balm teams need? Once again, we see that it’s a human-shaped thread leaders need to weave everything together and tie it up with a nice big bow at the end.
The future of successful workplaces starts with both human and visionary leadership. By helping leaders develop the right skills and adopt proactive strategies, we know that organisations can not only survive, but thrive, this year.
If you’re ready to explore how NKD can help your organisation get ahead of the trends from our leadership focus in 2026, check out how we can help develop your leaders or get in touch with us today.
