Executive Outlook: The US and Asia

In part two of our analysis of the hiring landscape in 2025, we turn our attention to the US and Asia, where executive job markets are experiencing contrasting but equally complex challenges as we move through 2025. In the US, economic uncertainty, political shifts, and the potential for disruptive trade policies have created a cautious hiring environment. Major corporations are scaling back recruitment, job openings have declined, and many executives are finding themselves in an extended search for new opportunities. At the same time, the shift towards freelance and project-based work is reshaping the executive landscape, requiring professionals to rethink traditional career models.

Meanwhile, Asia presents a mix of opportunities and volatility. China’s economy is evolving, but concerns over transparency and global trade tensions continue to loom large. Other parts of the region, however, are emerging as thriving hubs for executive talent, with India, Singapore, Vietnam, and Malaysia seeing strong demand for senior leaders, particularly in technology, finance, and infrastructure. The evolving geopolitical and economic landscape is influencing where and how executives can find success, making strategic career navigation more crucial than ever.

The US:

With Donald Trump back in the White House, it’s difficult to predict which way the US economy will go. There will certainly be winners and losers under his extreme America First agenda. Canada, Mexico and China were immediately hit with greater-than-expected blanket levies. Last-minute deals were made and the world’s biggest economy pulled back from the brink of triggering trade wars with its nearest neighbours, temporarily at least. They still loom, however. At the time of writing, it remained to be seen how it would play out with China, Trump had the EU firmly in his sights and the UK was on a warning. If Trump pulls the trigger, it will make the path to executive success even more treacherous and competitive across the globe.

The green economy, previously at the forefront of policies in Europe and America, may take a back seat across the Atlantic, even while LA burns and scientists warn time is running out to make the difficult economic decisions that might reverse climate change.

The Treasury reported an unexpected slowdown in growth at the end of 2024, partly due to falls in trade and investment and the impact of hurricanes and strikes. While lower than the 3.1% of Q3, the 2.3% growth in Q4 was still higher than in the UK or Europe.

Real growth since the pandemic was higher than any other country, at 11.5% compared to 4.6% in the Eurozone and just 2.9% in the UK.

Consumer confidence also remained high, with spending up 4.3%. However this may have been a rush to buy high-ticket items like cars in anticipation of increasing costs in the event of trade wars. Whether Trump is postulating and using the threat as a bargaining tool or truly committed to tariffs remains to be seen. Economists, manufacturers and importers/exporters fear rising prices could hit hard, push up inflation and see another interest rate spike.

That uncertainty has already reached hiring. So far this year, Amazon, Microsoft and Salesforce are among those cutting their corporate workforces. A fifth of unemployed US professionals seeking work say they have been looking for at least a year and 40% of them said they weren’t invited to a single interview. Job openings in Q4 were at their lowest level since the pandemic.

IT, finance and software development declined by 10-20% while positions in banking, project management, hospitality, and customer service sectors all saw double-digit falls.

Uncertainty around global trends, the election and, now, Trump’s impact on different sectors of the economy, have instilled a wait-and-see approach. Once the new President has bedded in, and the tariff crusade has settled, companies may be more confident in the direction of flow and willing to invest in big hires.

For now, employers are increasingly hedging their bets by hiring on a freelance basis, enabling them to focus resources on specific projects and adjust them as dynamics and priorities change quickly in the evolving landscape, while reducing costs associated with permanent staff. More than a third of US workers are thought to be working in the gig economy, another sign of a cautious employer’s market, however it does have its benefits, such as bridging gaps between permanent employment, boosting skill and experience and offering flexibility.

Some US regions are doing better than others, of course, and differing salary brackets in senior roles give an idea of what is happening within key economic centres of the US.  A guide to assist job seeking can be found here.

Asia:

China, the world’s second biggest economy, has seen a reversal in the decade-long trend of growing unemployment and under-employment. Sectors such as electric cars, AI chips and platforms continue to drive growth, though the lack of transparency, as demonstrated in suspicions around the development and security of its newly popular Gen AI Deepseek app, can make China a difficult economy to read accurately or trust.

At time of writing, the Chinese government appeared reluctant to engage in any meaningful tit-for-tat tariffs with the US, showing its relative weakness and dependence on international trade.

Any grab for Taiwan, which is leading the world in the production of AI chips, could destabilise the region.

Post-pandemic, there has been a steady outflow in overseas senior workers, particularly those from Europe. Multinationals are moving to alternative regional HQs such as Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia, taking professionals and executives with them as they seek to expand into these emerging markets. These more accessible Asian hubs are seeing growth in senior positions open to international candidates. Seven percent of Rialto’s clients are now based in Asia. The continent dominates the global landscape in terms of innovation, claiming more than two thirds of all patents, demonstrating investor confidence and strength in development of new products, technologies and services.

Organisations across the Asia-Pacific region, particularly global investment firms, are actively seeking leaders with cross-cultural experience to effectively manage global teams and navigate the complexities of international markets. Candidates looking to resettle in Asia or to work in Asian markets should demonstrate cultural alignment and adaptability to drive organisational success across different regions.

There is also a notable shift towards flexible leadership structures, with organisations embracing interim executive roles. This approach allows companies to access specialised expertise as needed, providing agility in addressing specific challenges or growth phases without long-term commitments.

India is seeing growth of between 6-7% GDP per year as its strong domestic market, characterised by increasing middle class wealth and improving supply chain logistics, provides a cushion from global shocks and trade winds. The healthy, growing market, demand for international leadership talent, high-quality work and wages, is making India increasingly attractive to executives struggling in traditional markets.

Japan is returning to growth and getting inflation under control and could be a market to watch for executive opportunities, which are primarily concentrated in large, established corporations across sectors including automotive, technology, finance and retail, in areas like business development, strategy, operations management, and technology innovation.  Japanese language skills are essential.

For executives looking to secure senior roles in the US and Asia, the ability to adapt to a shifting global economy has never been more important.  In the US, hiring caution and economic unpredictability are prompting many companies to favour flexible, short-term engagements over permanent leadership appointments. This trend, while challenging, also offers executives new ways to remain active in the market, gain exposure to different industries, and position themselves for long-term opportunities when conditions stabilise.

In Asia, the demand for leadership talent remains strong, but the opportunities are concentrated in specific markets and sectors. Executives with cross-cultural experience, digital expertise, and an ability to drive transformation will be in the highest demand.

While there are many complex factors that account for the difficulties facing those seeking new positions at higher levels, candidates who are open-minded and adaptable can thrive by responding to emerging trends and developing their skill sets in alignment within growth areas.

It’s little wonder that this volatile and competitive global marketplace, with an ever-accelerating pace of evolution, has seen Google searches for “coaching” increase by 50% year-on-year, up to 60.7 million in 2024.  Trying to navigate it alone can be daunting and ultimately, fruitless.

Rialto director Richard Chiumento said: “It’s critical for candidates to be open-minded about new ways of seeking and preparing for work. Firing off dozens of applications to familiar roles that are likely to attract hundreds of applicants, take months to resolve, and possibly not even exist, can leave highly talented individuals despondent and desperate. Many come to us having wasted months taking the same, traditional actions – but expecting different results.

“It doesn’t work anymore. A new mindset, new strategies and toolkits are required for an increasingly disrupted and digital Executive marketplace.

“Senior people need to be prepared to invest time and resources in updating and aligning  their value proposition offering, explore new regions, markets, industries and functions, possibly think about short-term contracts and adapt and upgrade their skillsets. The world is changing faster than most executives think and they need to change with it or be left behind.”

In our 2025 Quarter 1 Executive Outlook, one feature stood out for us: Hiring is down almost across the board but executive level positions are being hit hardest. Even the most talented, experienced and highly-qualified candidates or those who are more used to being headhunted with their biggest issues deciding which offer to accept, are struggling to get to interview.

But are analysts predicting it will get better or worse in 2025?

Here, we take a deeper dive into the executive and wider recruitment landscape and look at conditions, trends and forecasts. In part one, we focus on the UK and Europe and in second part, Asia and the US.

As we enter 2025, the UK and European executive job markets are facing one of the most challenging landscapes in recent memory.

The whole world is paying the price for the economic hiatus of the pandemic, the financial cost, cultural change and mental health legacy, while geopolitical tensions are on a knife-edge. Globally, markets are more volatile than was the case a few years ago, leaving many executives in a prolonged state of transition.

The pandemic-inspired trend for distributed team working has expanded the higher end recruitment market to a global pool of executive and emerging leadership talent, creating greater competition, but also opening new opportunities for candidates.

Meanwhile, organisations everywhere are getting to grips with the increasingly complex challenges and opportunities presented by digital and AI technologies, especially Generative AI. The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Survey 2025 found 86% of employers expect their business to be transformed by AI by 2030. This means that in-demand leadership skillsets are in constant flux with executives are now facing a more urgent requirement to upskill to stay relevant.

Some legacy roles are disappearing to be replaced by positions that did not even exist a decade ago. In fact, a 70% change in required job skills is anticipated by 2030. This shift in emphasis towards newly in-demand skills, character and enterprise leaders – who account for fewer than a sixth of executives – has left many established senior leaders struggling to understand their place in this new world order.

Executive search organisations, meanwhile, say there is a shortage of leaders with the required skillsets, outlook, confidence and capacity to drive innovation and oversee transformation, especially in growth areas of technology, healthcare and fintech. The dial has moved; executives need to develop an understanding of what is now required of them, adjust their offering, upskill and repivot. The consequences of not doing so could lead to obsolescence.

To top it all off, a trend is emerging among some organisations to attempt to obscure any difficulties they may be having by posting “ghost jobs”- positions which have never existed. They may give the appearance that the business is thriving – but waste the valuable time and resources of the candidates who apply. Meanwhile, AI-powered recruitment tools mean employers and headhunters can scan worldwide talent pools to look for the right candidates, requiring everyone to better understand the new rules of the executive marketplace and up their game and digital presence. Executive profiles are essentially data points which need to be found.

Those that make the first cut may then be asked to perform through multiple stages of interviews, dragging the process out for months and extending time out of work.

This summary explores the trends shaping the UK and European executive hiring landscape, from the sectors experiencing the sharpest declines to those showing signs of resilience and growth. For executives navigating this turbulent period, understanding these dynamics will be critical to securing their next opportunity in an increasingly selective and competitive market.

Trends, forecasts and opportunities by region: the UK

Headlines in the UK have made grim reading for business leaders since the October 2024 budget, with some right-leaning media warning of a possible meltdown as companies face a quadruple threat from high running costs, an increasing employer tax burden, a crisis in consumer confidence and likely further destabilising action by the Chancellor to try to fill that infamous £22 billion government spending black hole.

The EY ITEM Club is the latest influencer to downgrade predicted UK GDP from 1.5% to 1% in 2025. If the Chancellor is forced to make more cuts, some economists warn the UK could head into a “doom loop” between debt and growth. Much will come down to what happens next in the global economy.

Even if the UK escapes direct US trade tariffs, the potential international impact of increased prices and trade wars could ripple across the Atlantic and the English Channel. More uncertainty in an already edgy recruitment market will only make conditions more difficult to navigate. That market is already tough with the latest figures showing a 22% rise in job applications in Q3, 2024, with 24 candidates per role, up from 19 in Q2, while the number of jobs posted saw a 10.6% drop compared to the 2023 average. Two fifths of recruiters report more candidates but 56% say there has been a slowdown in hiring.

Overall, predictions point to a very challenging and competitive market for the top jobs in a fast-changing environment.  All eyes will be on the next round of economic forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility in March and whether the PM Sir Keir Starmer’s can successfully forge stronger trade links with the EU while keeping Trump tariffs at bay. Key business organisations are forecasting the following:

CBI anticipates more interest rate cuts to offset sluggish growth and weak hiring with inflation coming down: “Business surveys have softened, with the CBI’s own growth indicator pointing to a significant fall in output over the quarter ahead. Hiring intentions also deteriorated – now at their weakest since the COVID pandemic – and price expectations have ticked higher.”

IoD:  “The significant increases in employer NI, the forthcoming increase in the minimum wage and concerns over the cost of employment rights continue to sap demand for workers.” A quarter of directors told an IoD survey they expect their headcounts to be lower through 2025 but the same amount said they would go up, while almost half expected wages to increase.

British Chambers of Commerce: “Our latest survey paints a worrying picture of weak workforce growth, persistent hiring difficulties and cuts in workplace training. It also revealed that 55% of firms are planning to put up prices, with labour costs the main driver.”

The IMF: Predicts higher growth of 1.6%.

Despite these challenges, opportunities do exist and lie in addressing the UK’s significant skills gap. While familiar roles and functions may be in short supply, almost two thirds of recruiters report skills gaps in the UK.  At senior level, they are struggling to fill roles that involve AI-led transformation, a gap that Rialto focus on preparing clients for. Such future-facing, in-demand roles can offer faster resettlement, higher remuneration and greater  security for executives open to adapt.

Infrastructure and utilities, property development and capital delivery are also among the sectors with the greatest demand and lowest supply but equally require a stand out proposition.

The EU:

The Eurozone experienced zero growth in Q4, 2024. Goldman Sachs warned it could yet take a “sizeable hit” amid uncertainty over Trump’s threatened trade tariffs, especially around growth and confidence.

Germany, the largest economy, has seen two years of contraction reducing its 2025 growth forecast from 1.1% to 0.3%, largely due to high energy costs and labour shortages.  Its manufacturing and export-heavy economy has been hit by high energy prices and labour shortages and would be extremely vulnerable to US trade levies.

The IMF has forecast 1% growth across the zone in 2025, with 2.3% in Spain, 3.5% in Poland, 0.8% in France and 1.6% in the Netherlands. Those figures will be revised downwards if tariffs are imposed.

The European Central Bank expects inflation to hover around 2.5% with cost pressures easing and rising household incomes being the main driver of growth. Unemployment is predicted to sit at around 6.5% while exports are expected to remain subdued, picking up in 2026, again, depending on tariffs. Employment is expected to maintain modest growth.

The Eurozone’s financial industry is looking precarious for executive recruitment. Several major banks announced a wave of redundancies including shaving board membership, with Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing warning 2025 will be “the year of reckoning”.  Stagnation is likely to be exacerbated by Trump lifting regulations in the US to promote unfettered growth

For executives, looking to Europe for their next opportunity, the best opportunities lie in ESG and digital transformation. Predictions are that professionals demonstrating expertise in green transitions, AI ethics, and digital transformation will remain in demand.   As well as seeking to drive efficiencies and growth in these areas, organisations need to adjust their operations in accordance with new environmental and AI regulations around security and ethics.

According to Business Research Insights: “European organisations are increasingly prioritising sustainability and moral leadership” to drive successful transformation. A WTW survey found 94% of European firms surveyed included one or more ESG metrics in their executive pay programmes.

In summary, the executive job market in the UK and Europe is undergoing a profound transformation, with traditional career pathways continuing to be less predictable and competition for senior roles intensifying. Economic pressures, regulatory shifts, and evolving corporate priorities mean that organisations are being increasingly selective in their hiring, prioritising leaders with the skills and strategic vision to drive efficiency, innovation, and transformation. The days of relying on experience alone to secure senior roles are over; executives must take a proactive approach to redefine their value proposition in this evolving landscape. Those who fail to align with these changing demands risk being left behind.

Successful Leaders do not fall into place; they plan, prospect, listen, collaborate, self-reflect and seek to improve continuously. They develop a leadership mindset, a set of attitudes, beliefs, and practices that shape how they will think, behave, and inspire others in alignment with organisational goals.

Some may make the mistake of believing a leadership mindset is a fixed set of traits, techniques, skills and a commanding authority. That mode of leadership is outdated and counterproductive in today’s fast-evolving, unpredictable and human-centred business landscape.

Different leadership styles are required for different circumstances and the most influential and impactful leaders will ask themselves not, what is my leadership mindset, but what is my leadership mindset today?

This should be a conscious thought process, where the senior leader behaves like the captain of a ship, continuously considering all of the prevailing challenges and opportunities before adjusting course and ensuring every member of the crew and every instrument at their disposal is set precisely to navigate with confidence while preparing for any unforeseen storms ahead.

The leader must first examine their own skillsets and abilities against the current and future needs of the organisation to set a personal professional development programme. This might need objective structured support from an executive coach.

Leadership mindsets directly influence organisational culture. A leader with an inclusive mindset can foster a diverse, high-performing workplace, while one with an agile mindset can instil a sense of confidence and experimentation during periods of transformation or trust and stability in more difficult times. Regular reflection ensures leaders remain effective role models.

There are four main types of leadership mindset: growth, inclusive, agile and enterprise. Depending on an individual’s position, some may be more relevant than others. Here we look at the four, why and when they might be important and share some of the tips and insights Rialto consultants use when supporting c-suite and senior leadership in professional development coaching.

Growth Mindset

Coined by psychologist Carol Dweck, a growth mindset is the belief that abilities, intelligence, and talents can be developed through dedication and hard work. Leaders with a growth mindset view failures as opportunities to learn, encourage innovation, and foster a culture where their teams are unafraid to take risks and grow. This is the mindset for CEOs taking the organisation to the next level and senior leadership taking their teams into new territories, whether they be geographical, new markets, new products and services or technology-led business transformation.

For senior leaders, adopting a growth mindset ensures adaptability in the face of technological advancements and market disruptions. By continuously learning and evolving, they model behaviour that encourages teams to innovate and excel.

Leaders with a growth mindset will avoid negatives, using words such as yet and not yet – as in, we have not yet reached our objective to penetrate the new market – and avoiding not as in can not, have not, will not.

They will build energy, drive and positivity into the workforce, celebrating wins and always showing appreciation for the efforts, persistence and attitude of employees rather than focusing on outcomes and failures. When things go wrong, leaders with a growth mindset take responsibility and invite collaboration to learn from the mistake and improve the next iteration.

One prominent example is Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft. Upon taking the helm in 2014, Nadella transformed Microsoft’s culture from one rooted in internal competition to one focused on collaboration, learning, and experimentation. Under his leadership, Microsoft embraced cloud computing, pivoted toward AI innovation, and regained its position as one of the most valuable companies globally. Nadella’s focus on “learn-it-all” instead of “know-it-all” is a hallmark of a growth mindset.

Inclusive Mindset

An inclusive mindset prioritises creating a workplace where diversity is celebrated and every individual feels valued and empowered. Leaders with this mindset proactively address biases, promote equity, and foster environments where diverse perspectives drive better decision-making.

Research consistently shows that inclusive organisations outperform their peers in innovation. Diverse viewpoints lead to richer ideas, better decision-making, and novel solutions. They also achieve better financial results. Teams that feel more valued and included collaborate better offering peer-to-peer support, reducing unproductive silos and encouraging team loyalty and investment in shared goals.

Leadership with an inclusive mindset understands the value of diversity and equality in promoting organisational reputation, attracting the best talent from the widest possible pool and making companies more competitive globally. They are committed to ensuring diverse voices are heard and incorporated, that individuals from any background, age, culture, gender, sexuality or race and those with physical and mental health issues are genuinely valued equally, not just in tick boxes. They will interrogate their own unconscious bias and ensure all staff are trained to do the same.

Arundhati Bhattacharya, the former Chair of the State Bank of India (SBI), exemplifies inclusivity. As the first woman to lead SBI, she implemented policies to support working mothers, including sabbaticals for childcare and championed diversity in leadership roles. Her efforts helped create a more equitable workplace, breaking barriers for women in the banking industry.

Leaders should always maintain an inclusive mindset but there are times when it should become the priority. For example, where a company works in an especially diverse market or territory or is expanding into a new culture or region. Also, where equality, diversity and inclusivity (EDI) have become an issue risking organisational and reputational damage. Of course maintaining a constant inclusive mindset – and ensuring you have the correct employment procedures and accountable leaders in place to oversee robust EDI framework – should prevent any such issues arising.

Airbnb’s CEO, Brian Chesky, had to prioritise an inclusive mindset to address racial bias during the company’s global  expansion. Research showed people with African-American names were less likely to be accepted as guests in some regions and received lower rent. It invited open collaboration from anyone in the Airbnb community to collaborate to find solutions. The property rental platform was transparent about the issue and what it was trying to do. It introduced new features to minimise the issue, enhancing its pro-diversity credentials in an incredibly diverse market.

Agile Mindset

This has become increasingly important in the wake of the economic shock of the pandemic and the rapid advances and economic transformation propelled by the AI revolution. This has left senior leadership in almost all roles and functions having to learn and adapt quickly. AI is changing the way all processes are done so it is imperative that every senior leader stays ahead of the curve on what is happening in their zone.

An agile mindset is characterised by flexibility, responsiveness, speed, learning, innovation and adaptability. Leaders with this mindset embrace change, experiment with new approaches and are comfortable pivoting strategies when faced with uncertainty or emerging customer needs. It emphasises iterative progress over rigid plans.

It allows leaders to respond quickly to emerging trends and disruptions, ensuring their organisations remain competitive, relevant and resilient. Companies looking to exploit new technologies need to prioritise an agile mindset but agility can also help buffer any unforeseen shocks and issues.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is renowned for his agile approach to leadership. He famously fostered a “Day 1” mindset, encouraging constant reinvention to avoid stagnation. Amazon’s willingness to experiment, such as moving from book sales to an ever-increasing online market, more recently launching the incredibly successful AWS (Amazon Web Services) and pivoting to prioritise Prime membership, reflects its agility in meeting customer needs and staying ahead of competitors.

Leaders with an agile mindset will also empower employees to respond and adapt to change and have confidence in their decision-making. Leaders will free their paths by minimising decision-by-committee, reducing time spent in unnecessary meetings and duplicating work. They will use data-driven processes to create real time feedback loops to help the workforce learn and improve continuously. Mistakes will be reframed as opportunities for learning.

Guardrails must be put in place to spot any outliers or actions likely to lead to serious issues, but that safety net will enable quick responses and the ability to repivot as an organisation when new opportunities or challenges arise, taking along the workforce.

Enterprise Mindset

An enterprise mindset involves thinking beyond individual roles, departments, or business units to focus on the bigger picture and organisation’s overall goals. Leaders with this mindset prioritise cross-functional collaboration, align resources to strategic priorities and maintain a holistic perspective  to spot and seize opportunities for business success and that of the whole ecosystem. They have a deep understanding of what makes a business work and can think laterally or horizontally as well as vertically.

Being an enterprise leader is like constantly balancing dozens or even hundreds of spinning plates. Recent research by Korn Ferry found that just 15 percent of executives have the quality and skills to do it. Organisations led by enterprise leaders grow 6.7% faster. So, this is an area that leaders should be focusing on developing, demonstrating and exploiting in their careers when looking at executive transition and promotion. It is an elusive skill so may require external support.

Senior leaders with an enterprise mindset can break down silos, foster collaboration and ensure that all parts of the organisation work together towards common objectives. This is particularly important in large organisations where misalignment can hinder progress.

They encourage and support collective decision-making, see the connectivity between different parts of the business and can look forward, like a chess player, at how different moves by different players can be made at the right time to achieve an objective. They can tweak and adjust the strategy effectively in response to incoming pressures and unforeseen issues.

They are, therefore, considerate as to how decisions they make will affect the whole organisation.

Enterprise leaders adopt technology to help stay on top of developments and issues across the organisation. AI-driven platforms are developing sophisticated tools that analyse huge amounts of data for specific prompted questions and uses. Predictive analytics identify issues before they arise or opportunities for new products or markets. They can help isolate areas of underperformance and suggest ways to improve.

They will also think carefully about talent acquisition and retention with an eye always on preparing for the future as well as protecting the brand through compassionate and ethical governance.

However, being an enterprise leader does not mean being an autocratic, micromanaging leader. Jack Ma, co-founder of Chinese retailer Alibaba, knows every inch of his business but empowers and inspires his people to make good decisions to drive growth. He guides and oversees every section, taking responsibility for outcomes. He can see what customers want now and will want in the future and how to deliver it. Unusually He incorporates all four mindsets.

As noted above, these mindsets can not be assumed, they must be developed and constantly adjusted and refined to reflect changing circumstances, organisational goals, stakeholder expectation and other market forces.

Leaders must build periods of self-reflection into their schedules and seek regular, honest feedback from trusted colleagues and mentors to identify blind spots, any personal behaviours or feelings which might be impacting judgement, and look at areas for professional growth. Humility is essential and the ability to take on constructive criticism and advice. A coach can help hold up a mirror and create structured learning opportunities

The leadership mindset is a powerful driver of organisational success, shaping how leaders inspire teams, navigate challenges, and pursue opportunities. From the growth mindset to inclusive, agile to enterprise thinking, each perspective brings unique strengths to the table. However, the true hallmark of effective leadership lies in adaptability—continuously reassessing and refining one’s mindset to align with the demands of an ever-changing world.

Senior leaders who embrace this philosophy not only position themselves for personal growth but also empower their organisations to thrive amidst uncertainty. By adopting the right mindset at the right time, they can lead with vision, innovation, and purpose, ensuring sustained success in a complex, dynamic environment.

If you would like support to develop your leadership mindset, our team of Coaches and Leadership Development specialists can customise a personalised programme, aligned with your personal and organisational goals.

As we move into year three of Generative AI, its potential for enhancing operations, driving innovation and building a competitive edge is becoming ever clearer, as are the challenges and risks.

The world’s most innovative companies have moved, or are moving, beyond experimentation to integrate AI-first models, adjusting spending and recalibrating business strategies to maximise ROI and stay ahead of the curve. PwC found almost half of the US’s Fortune 1000 companies now have AI fully embedded in their workflows, with a third using it in their products and services.

This year, priorities should include solidifying foundational structures, measuring outcomes and adjusting programmes to make Gen AI work effectively and safely and secure that advantage. Those late to the party or failing to understand the critical need to constantly evolve and manage Gen AI may struggle to ever catch up.

In a recent survey by Ernst & Young (EY), 97% of senior business leaders reported positive returns on their AI investments with a third planning to spend £8 million or more on AI initiatives this year while UK software buyers expect to increase spending by an average 5-15%. Organisations that commit 5% or more of their total budget toward AI are seeing more positive returns than more cautious investors with the biggest in operational efficiencies, (84%) and employee productivity (83%).

It is essential for c-suite executives to have a full and proper understanding of the AI landscape, both within their sector or industry and beyond. Trying to experiment or get to grips with Generative AI in a bubble or silo is like constantly trying to reinvent the wheel when budgets would be better spent targeting funding to improve its performance. Progressive organisations will research thoroughly the tools, programmes and platforms used by competitors and sector leaders to learn what has and has not worked for them and how they are prioritising their AI budgets in 2025 and beyond.

Chaotic implementation has led to lost ROI and confidence in some early iterations of Gen AI-powered programmes as over-eager organisations put the cart before the horse, buying the latest hyped-up tools or platforms through FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) without really understanding their value, testing them or building sound foundational infrastructure. Only 12% reported using sandboxes in one survey, for example, leaving too much to chance and increasing risks of damaging failures. Getting it right demands a disciplined approach with co-operation and collaboration from every department and at every level.

UK senior decision makers told Capterra’s 2025 Tech Trends that successful technological implementation was the greatest challenge they now faced as they moved onto the next phase of adoption, followed by training and upskilling employees, economic and geopolitical pressures, assessing value and risk of AI and identifying the right technologies to invest in.

The most innovative companies will be patient, appreciating that real returns on investment may take years to materialise in terms of profit, but that agile, future-focused and strategically aligned Gen AI-led programmes will ensure long term competitive growth.

(See our previous insight on the five stages of AI maturity)

Here we look at trends within the three main focuses for the AI spending priorities c-suite executives should be considering over the next 12 months: Tech, data and upskilling the workforce.

Spending on Tech:

Globally, spending on hardware and devices, including computers and smartphones, is likely to grow by £10 billion to £118.5 billion, with Covid lockdown working-from-home technology nearing the end of its useful life and new AI-powered devices offering far more possibilities.
Spending on software is expected to see an even greater increase, accelerating by 13.2% in 2025 to £230.5 billion.

Most software buyers in the UK expect to spend between 5-15% more on digital systems this year as they seek to increase ROI on their AI investments, according to the Capterra research. Six in 10 will dedicate one to four months choosing the right product and 38% see implementation as a key challenge.

The survey found security will be the highest priority, followed by AI, IT management, IT architecture and business intelligence and data analytics.

Automation: Justina Nixon-Saintil, vice president and chief impact officer at IBM, believes AI automation will be the story of 2025. “Any tasks or jobs in the company that could be automated by AI will happen within the next year,” she said.

Alicia Pittman, global people team chair at the Boston Consulting Group said a priority should be custom GPTs and mini-automations to build bottom-up power, enabling entire knowledge-based workforces to boost productivity and quality. She said: “It’s super quick, and it doesn’t require big investments or processes.”

CRMs: This year, more companies are expected to move away from in-house Gen AI solutions towards buying partner solutions. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms such as HubSpot, Salesforce and Amazon AWS are constantly improving their AI-powered offerings with broad options for customised integrated systems that can enhance almost all business objectives, from identifying new product or market opportunities and analysing big data to hyper-personalised marketing and sales which vastly improve customer experience, boost sales and build loyalty.

Fortune Business Insights predicts that the CRM market will more than double from the £50 billion spent in 2022 to £120 billion by 2029. Most platforms offer free, simplified versions of subscription models which can keep costs down, such as Microsoft Pilot and Salesforce Einstein, enabling smaller businesses and start-ups to capitalise on these fast-evolving Gen-AI powered technologies.

Spending on Data:

As the AI landscape matures, decision-makers at innovative organisations will look to upscale, standardise and refine AI use with connected, clean data across all functions and lines of their organisations to ensure it remains relevant, agile and that risks are understood and managed.

Two in five UK companies identified data quality as the greatest challenge to successful AI adoption in a survey by Hitachi Vantara. Nearly half reported significant challenges with data storage and 56% admitted to using less than half their data. Meanwhile 83% of senior business leaders say stronger data infrastructure would enable faster AI adoption.

Gen AI is only as good as the data on which it is trained and building scalable and flexible data architecture that can manage speed, variety and volume of data is critical to enable any organisation to scale up programmes and ensure maximum ROI, potentially accelerating adoption by 30%. The IBM Institute for Business Value found that poor data quality costs the US economy around $3.1 trillion a year.

Companies like Netflix and Tesco have shown the value of substantial investment in data and data infrastructure, able to process huge datasets to hyper-personalise their services, innovate, and get closer to their markets. Innovative enterprises are investing in tools including ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes, data lakes, or iPaaS (Integration Platform as a Service) solutions to optimise the value of their data.

Cloud storage: More than half of IT spending in key market segments is projected to shift to the cloud by the end of 2025, with global spending on cloud computing services expected to reach £1 trillion. Organisations are moving towards multicloud, open data storage to avoid vendor lock-in.

The UK government has welcomed news of £25 billion investment in data centres which will provide more computing power and data storage building infrastructure to boost AI development and innovation.

Businesses will need to manage 150% more data by 2026 and Gartner predicts that spending on data centres will climb by 15.5% in 2025 on top of a 35% rise in 2024.

Security: With this increasing reliance on data and cloud storage, security becomes ever more essential, especially in sensitive sectors such as finance, defence and healthcare. IBM reported the average cost of a data breach at more than £3.5 million in 2021. Gartner expects cybersecurity spending to increase 15% in 2025.

ESG: Organisations also need to think about the energy costs and impact on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) credentials of increased use of Gen AI and other technologies, investing in renewable sources wherever possible. Two thirds of senior leaders fear the negative impact of increased AI use on their sustainability targets and energy supply.

Steve Wanner, EY head of Americas Industrials & Energy said: “Leaders are waking up to the energy challenges inherent in scaling AI. To create innovative solutions that enable energy efficient and sustainable AI growth, companies must collaborate across the value chain, connecting the dots from energy providers to the end-use AI customer.”

Technology could also be part of the answer. Deloitte found three quarters of public companies planned to invest in AI-powered reporting tools to help them evaluate, analyse and share ESG data to comply with tightening regulations worldwide.

However, the biggest rewards are likely to be found in the joining up and safe (anonymised) data-sharing of and between AI systems, which demands greater collaboration within and between organisations, sectors and industries.

Spending on upskilling:

This year, CEOs and other c-suite decision-makers will be more hands on and, hopefully, AI-literate, and therefore committed to restructuring operations so that departments have access to data scientists and AI leads as well as focusing on educating and upskilling all knowledge-based workers and ensuring investment is more disciplined, methodical and targeted.

The speed of Gen AI evolution has taken even tech experts by surprise since ChatGPT opened it up to the masses in November 2022, so it’s hardly surprising that most of the workforce, from CEOs to customer agents and even IT managers, often feel overwhelmed and even intimidated by it.

Almost half of companies admit to lacking the know-how to integrate AI while 90% of executives say they do not know their workforce’s AI skill and proficiency. Four in five IT professionals say they are confident they can adapt but just 12% have significant experience working with AI. Organisations should consider the users of the technology before they buy it and the current skills landscape to avoid workforce burnout and unsafe or under-use of the tools and platforms.

This skills gap threatens to seriously destabilise and restrict the opportunities offered by Gen AI while increasing risk. Babies born in 2025 will be the first of Generation Beta and will grow up with AI all around them. Until they mature, businesses need to retrain their own workforces and bring in data science and Gen-AI planning expertise where it is lacking.

Tech companies are ahead of the curve on this. Amazon developed a Machine Learning University, investing heavily in training and development programs to build its internal capabilities.

IBM has made a commitment to scale up two million of its workers in AI by 2026. Nixon-Saintil said. “There’s a sense of urgency in making sure we are not leaving people behind.”

The growing sophistication of Natural Language Processing (NLP) will continue to enable employees at all levels to leverage AI, so the workforce needs to undergo continuous learning to keep up with new and evolving tools, platforms and emerging risks. Staff who will be using Gen AI models such as Chat GPT, Microsoft CoPilot and Google’s Gemini need to learn to craft clear prompts, interrogate the responses and use them to augment their own productivity and quality of work while understanding the inherent risks and having a clear chain of supervision.

EY says 59% of organisation are planning to increase training for workers on the responsible use of AI in 2025, up from 49% six months ago.

Investment in AI is only expected to absorb around a fifth of IT spending next year. Much more, then, will go into infrastructure and the people required to make it work. Both programmes need to be organisation-wide to enable AI-first business models.

Senior leadership also need to prioritise investing in their own AI literacy to make rational, evidence-based decisions before spending on AI programmes. In the EY survey, 54% of respondents said they felt they were failing as a leader as they struggled to keep up with AI’s rapid growth.

The pressure to act decisively is intensifying. Yet many leaders find themselves navigating incremental changes, unsure of how to transform their business models or confidently prove GenAI’s ROI.

Responding to feedback from our c-suite and senior leadership clients, Rialto are facilitating a virtual strategic collaboration programme between leaders from across the globe, to share experiences, perspectives, and best practices on GenAI adoption. It is designed to support leaders with the critical insights, tools, and actionable strategies needed to broaden their understanding of the complexities & opportunities of GenAI.

All participants in the programme will receive a personalised and group alignment report, to support them to more confidently lead their organisation in the GenAI era

To find more details and register onto the Adoption of GenAI Global Virtual Dialogue click here.

Our Q1 2025 analysis of the executive market, reviews the UK and wider economies, recent performance, projections for the next few months and beyond, the market for c-suite and senior leadership positions and trends that executives need to be aware of to stay ahead of the curve and promote both organisational and personal professional growth.

Economic Outlook

It might feel as though storms have moved in permanently over the UK economy, casting a long shadow over prospects of growth in the near term but there are breaks in the cloud and some bright spots too.

Let’s start with the challenges, and then focus on the positives.

The October 2024 budget continues to weigh heavily with rising business costs stifling growth. Inflation, though nowhere near the double digit figures we saw in recent years, did not fall quickly enough in Q4 2024 to allow the hoped-for interest rate falls that might have triggered greater investment and lower operational costs. In April, companies may have to increase prices further to accommodate employer National Insurance contribution rises, risking further inflation hikes.

Latest data shows UK GDP flatlined at 0% in Q3, slower than the Eurozone, 0.4% in Q3 and the US, 0.8%.

UK government borrowing reached record highs, and all eyes are now on Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s next move: will she be forced to break her election promises and raise taxes, undermining consumer and business confidence further, or cut public services?

There was a shock drop in retail sales over Christmas and new export sales were down for the first time in more than 14 months at the end of 2024. The fact that this was felt hardest in trade with the EU is especially concerning when the second coming of US President Donald Trump threatens to bring in blanket international tariffs of up to 20%. Meanwhile, the Pound has been falling against the Dollar.

However, there are some green shoots, if you look hard enough. UK inflation did fall marginally, raising the prospect of an imminent interest rate cut, and economic output shifted upwards slightly.

A precarious truce (at the time of writing) in the Middle East could lift global markets and there is a chance Trump’s tariff threats will not come to anything. Most economists agree they would harm US economic interests in the long term, plus the UK’s service industry-based economy would be hit much less severely than manufacturing countries like Germany.

New IMF predictions published on January 17 projected UK growth at 1.6% for 2025, up marginally on previous forecasts, and higher than the Eurozone, but lower than the “steady” global growth it anticipates of 3.3%.

GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index, conducted on behalf of the European Commission, also rose a little in December.

Growth remains stronger than expected in the US and sentiment could pick up on this side of the Atlantic with some decent tailwinds, especially as more forward-looking organisations start to reap the returns on early and disciplined AI spending.

The government says its commitment to “mainlining” AI into the veins of the British economy, which includes seeking investment in datacentres and building a super-computer, will turbocharge the economy and cement the UK, already third behind the US and China, as a leading place to do AI-based business.

It is also seeking to fix the industrial bottlenecks that have impeded growth such as planning and infrastructure, which could attract more global investment and boost growth in the medium to longer term.

UK Job Market

That economic uncertainty and pessimism around the autumn budget translated into slow hiring in Q4 2024, with permanent jobs falling at the fastest rate in December since the Covid pandemic. Vacancies were down in all sectors, but the steepest decline was seen in executive and professional roles.

However, there is hope for those willing to reskill and repivot into new growth sectors, particularly AI and sustainability, as we shall see in our analysis of executive trends.

The pace of job cuts in December was higher than in 15 years (except for the pandemic) with a quarter of private sector businesses freezing hiring and cutting vacancies. January, traditionally a time for hiring to pick up, remains muted so far.  It is likely to remain so, as a general picture, until organisations have assessed the impact of those higher NI costs, inflationary trends and have a better idea of where interest rates and US trade are headed.

Two thirds of employers said the NI hike would make it harder to increase wages and offer bonuses, demonstrating the need for senior leaders and executives to upskill and increase their value proposition to stay relevant and competitively rewarded.

Candidates say securing the most senior positions is getting harder, competition is fiercer, and many are not sure exactly what companies are looking for and cannot understand why they are not getting responses from applications for jobs for which they believe they are qualified.

Those looking for new positions need to gain an understanding of how the job market has changed since they were last out there and look at areas of growth and key skills in demand.

However, the tension is exacerbated by the fact that 45% of HR professionals and employers admit they do not have a full grasp of what skills their organisations need to take them into an AI-first future.

It is, therefore, equally critical for HR and other team leaders doing the hiring to be literate in how AI is impacting roles so they can align talent acquisition and upskilling with technology-driven strategic objectives and budgetary considerations. To optimise and update workforce skills bases, they should be using the latest AI tools and platforms to gain data-driven insights.

Candidates who have thoroughly researched how they believe AI can support their target employers’ organisations will shine.

Salary inflation at the highest levels shows that while there may be fewer vacancies, especially in legacy c-suite and senior leadership roles, companies are willing to pay more to acquire and retain the right talent that are able to demonstrate in demand skills which include AI and digital literacy but also include complex problem solving and softer skills like social perspective and emotional intelligence.

Economic growth is forecast later into 2025, and organisations will need to boost hiring as it happens. Whether employer or potential candidate, constant awareness and analysis of, and adjustment to, emerging trends will be crucial to seizing opportunities that arise.

Executive Trends

The country is currently stuck in something of a hiring paradox. Two thirds of UK professionals plan to look for a new job this year, 61% say it is getting harder and 20% fear they lack the skills for the future. Meanwhile, HR professionals are finding it increasingly challenging to find qualified talent. So, the market is flooded with talent, just the wrong kind.

This can be largely attributed to the fast-changing landscape driven by the acceleration of Generative AI and its impact on all aspects of work, which is demanding entirely new approaches. In-demand skills that existed in 2016, when AI was first emerging as a realistic driver of business transformation, are expected to have changed by 65% in 2030, just five years away.

More than half of LinkedIn’s list of jobs on the rise for 2025 did not even exist 25 years ago. The top two, globally, are AI engineer and AI consultant. Sustainability credentials are also becoming more important and jobs that require these skills are more difficult to fill. The two sectors alone account for half the top 10 growing job roles in the LinkedIn UK list.

That does not mean candidates without hard technical skills are unwanted. Executives and senior leaders who can confidently and effectively oversee business transformation driven by emerging technologies are highly sought after. Keywords looked for include soft skills such as curiosity, agility, creativity and empathy.

Reskilling or upskilling to serve the green economy will also pay off in 2025. LinkedIn research showed global demand for talent in sustainability grew twice as quickly as supply in 2023 and 2024, with a 54% higher hiring rate than the average.

Janine Chamberlin, Head of LinkedIn UK, reflected what Rialto has been advising clients and followers: “Resilience, adaptability, and continuous learning will be key to navigating this rapidly changing landscape. And for businesses looking to make the most of the opportunities presented by new and emerging technologies, it’s clear that investing in upskilling initiatives, and AI tools to help their HR teams, will be vital.”

Employers are also struggling to negotiate the conflict between their wish to see staff fully back in the office while talent prioritises hybrid and flexible work. Another HR threat to organisational growth is rising levels of attrition and sickness. Executives need to implement data-driven predictive analytics to maintain productivity levels and keep workforce-associated costs down.

Rialto director Richard Chiumento said: “As we can see, AI and other emerging technologies, including those focussed on the green economy, are the areas seeing real growth as other sectors and legacy roles continue to struggle.

“It has been an especially difficult period for executives looking for their next role, but those who are open to upskilling and to repivot can exploit the increasing demand against limited supply in different growth areas.

“Meanwhile, all the evidence shows that executives and senior leaders wishing to improve their performance within their current organisation will accelerate their own positive career trajectories and organisational success by getting ahead and staying ahead in digital and AI adoption and scaling up. It’s the single most important area for leadership to be focusing on in 2025.”

See our last insight on AI spending strategies.

The pressure to act decisively is intensifying. Yet many leaders find themselves navigating incremental changes, unsure of how to transform their business models or confidently prove GenAI’s ROI.

Responding to feedback from our c-suite and senior leadership clients, Rialto are facilitating a virtual strategic collaboration programme between leaders from across the globe, to share experiences, perspectives, and best practices on GenAI adoption. It is designed to support leaders with the critical insights, tools, and actionable strategies needed to broaden their understanding of the complexities & opportunities of GenAI.

All participants in the programme will receive a personalised and group alignment report, to support them to lead their organisation more confidently in the GenAI era.

To find more details and register onto the Adoption of GenAI Global Virtual Dialogue click here.

In the first part of this blog series Setting the Stage for Career and Organisational Success, we explored practical strategies for executives to establish a strong foundation for personal and organisational growth in the first half of the year. Goals were set, key relationships nurtured, and resources aligned with strategic objectives.

Here in part two, the focus is on building momentum. By evaluating progress, refining strategies, and embracing innovation, leaders can ensure they meet annual goals with a sense of achievement and readiness for further challenges ahead.

This blog outlines a framework for executives to consider in the second two quarters of an annual plan to consolidate achievements, enhance personal performance, and drive dynamic organisational growth.

Q3: Evaluate, Optimise, and Expand Leadership Impact

Opportunities come more quickly to those who stay ahead of the pack, adapt early and differentiate their approach.

Evaluate and Optimise Resources

The midpoint in any plan provides an ideal opportunity to step back and assess progress.  When evaluating your business priorities, review whether current resources are effectively aligned with strategic goals. Review the year-to-date performance against projections and identify areas that require rebalancing. Key considerations include:

• Resource Allocation: Are certain teams overburdened while others are underused? Can talent be redistributed to address shifting priorities?
• Talent Management: Have unforeseen departures created gaps? Are there rising stars who can take on greater responsibilities? Should hiring or upskilling plans be accelerated?
• Operational Efficiency: Examine supply chains, vendor contracts, and project workflows to address bottlenecks or inefficiencies.

By addressing these questions, executives can ensure resources are positioned for the greatest impact during the second half of the year.

Enhance Strategic Thinking with Data and AI

Strategic thinking is at the heart of effective leadership. Being able to think laterally, vertically and see the bigger picture is the hallmark of effective executives.  Focus on enhancing this skill by taking time to review and anticipate market trends, analyse data, and make informed decisions, leveraging data and analytics tools, particularly those powered by AI. These tools provide insights into market trends, customer behaviour, and internal performance metrics, offering a competitive edge.

However, the complexity of AI-generated insights requires careful interpretation. Engage in exercises to deepen your understanding, such as:

• Reverse-engineering AI insights to understand their rationale.
• Incorporating scenario planning and other strategic models to stress-test your decisions.
• Collaborating with teams of creative thinkers or mentors to explore innovative solutions to challenges.

Expand Leadership Impact: Mentoring and Board Roles

To stretch leadership skills and broaden influence, consider taking on roles outside your immediate organisation.

• Mentorship: Guiding emerging talent sharpens your own skills and can also add to your knowledge. It can provide fresh perspectives and bring to light additional strengths or areas to develop, particularly where mentees come from a different function or educational background or have specific skill sets and expertise.
• Non-Executive Directorships (NEDs): Serving as a non-executive director on a charity or start-up board can offer rich opportunities for networking and taking on a new role with different challenges. Anyone seeking a board position in their day job can gain valuable experience and boost their executive credentials. See our insight on how to get ahead as a NED.

These activities not only bolster your leadership credentials but also create a ripple effect of value within your professional network.

Q4: Review, Innovate, and Recharge

Review Performance and Refine Goals

As the year draws to a close, review progress against the objectives set earlier in the year. Think about team members and colleagues you have supported and the progress they have made. Equally, ensure core business imperatives are being met and evaluate.

• Are the original goals still relevant, or do they need refinement?
• Where have successes been achieved, and how can they be amplified?
• Which areas have fallen short, and what lessons can be used as opportunities to learn?

Encourage ongoing honest, blame-free evaluations within teams to foster a culture of learning and improvement. Recognise achievements and celebrate milestones to boost morale and maintain momentum into the final quarter.

This is where leaders earn their stripes and respect. How can a project or team be realigned with goals and get closer to desirable outcomes. What adjustments and corrections can reasonably be made at this time? Work with both stakeholders and teams to review and shift direction or create different collaborations to remain on course and deliver outcomes.

Drive Innovation and Prepare for the Future

With year-end within reach, hopefully the planning you have put in place all year is paying dividends, you have been able to negotiate any unforeseen challenges, you are on target to deliver year-end goals and you now have the resources and space to devote to more creative thinking before jumping ahead to plans for another year.

Q4 is the time to explore current and emerging trends in your sector and function. Actions include:

• Trend Analysis: Stay ahead by identifying emerging technologies and market shifts using free resources such as online magazines and expert professional think pieces and industry insights on LinkedIn and executive websites such as Rialto, BCG and Deloitte.
• Innovation Culture: Think about your ongoing approach to innovation and change: have you been risk averse or open to new ways of doing things? Foster an environment where teams and collaborations are designed to support experimenting with new ideas and approaches.
• AI Integration: In today’s fast-evolving Generative AI-led landscape, those who fear the new are most likely to be left behind. Evaluate how AI and other technologies can be further integrated to enhance efficiency and performance. What are your rivals doing? What is happening in your sector and comparable sectors? What are AI experts telling us about what may be possible in the near future? Are you ready for it?

Rest, Reflect, and Recharge:

Leadership requires resilience, and resilience requires rest. Use the end of the year and holiday period to step back and recharge. Reflect on the journey you set both for your business but also personally.  Look at what you have found most rewarding through the year and ask yourself these questions:

• Am I where I wanted to be when I started this 12-month plan?
• Am I satisfied with my professional growth and achievements?
• Have I maintained a healthy work-life balance?
• What adjustments can I make to ensure greater fulfilment and effectiveness next year?
• Is it time for a change? Or is there see scope for progress and fulfilment in your current organisation?

Consider feedback from trusted colleagues or family to gain additional perspectives on how you are navigating your responsibilities.

Preparing for the Next Stage of Leadership

The second half of the year offers a powerful opportunity to consolidate progress, address challenges, and set the stage for future success. Having a plan in place enables you to be more ready to evaluate and face new opportunities and challenges with clarity, confidence, and purpose.

Leadership, however, is a journey of constant evolution, and while careful planning is essential, adaptability, open-mindedness and reflection are equally critical. The higher one climbs, and the more responsibilities one takes on, the lonelier it can seem.  Working with a mentor or coach can encourage executives and senior leadership to step back and reflect, while providing invaluable guidance to navigate the day-to-day journey, offering perspective and accountability to help leaders reach their fullest potential.

“Planning without action is futile; action without planning is fatal.”

So said Cornelius Fichtner, a Swiss project management expert. Successful leaders understand that their careers and roles within organisations are ongoing projects that constantly needs to be consciously managed, adjusted, aligned with ever evolving strategic objectives, market forces, emerging trends and technological developments.

For executives looking to maintain their career on a positive, upward trajectory – whether pursuing a new role, growing within an organisation, or preparing for a significant step up – taking the time to reflect on personal goals and crystallising a structured vision of how to reach them by setting clear actions is key to success.

Breaking down that strategy into quarterly plans gives a practical framework to improve personal performance and retain a dynamic role in pushing for organisational growth and success.

The wind down to the end of the year and the run-in to Christmas can therefore provide the perfect opportunity for reflection and forward planning.  Executives who make this an annual practice gain clarity on what they aim to achieve, why those goals matter, how they intend to accomplish them, and what or who is needed to make them a reality. This intentional approach minimises wasted effort and maximises returns by focusing resources on meaningful priorities. Leaders who act with purpose and vision inspire confidence in their workforce and stakeholders alike.

In the first of this two-part blog series, we focus on practical steps that executives can consider to set the stage for personal and organisational success over the first two quarters.

Q1: Reflect, Assess, Set Goals.

Reflect: The start of the year often brings a renewed sense of energy and resolve. Teams return refreshed and focused from a break, making it an ideal time for leaders to refocus their efforts. The perfect time, then, to reignite and engage with key stakeholders to understand their expectations, challenges and opportunities and galvanise them into action and aligning objectives.

Asses: Reevaluate and carry out a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats).  Define both short-term and long-term career goals. Tools such as 360-degree feedback, personality assessments, and executive coaching can help shape a 12-month personal development plan with clear, actionable goals.

• Benchmark Skills: Compare existing skills against emerging opportunities and challenges. Identify areas for improvement, particularly in soft skills such as emotional intelligence, agility, and creativity, which are increasingly crucial in the AI-driven era.
• Schedule Development: Make time for training, conferences, or coaching. Populate your calendar with key events, manage conflicts, and work your projects around them
• Prioritise: Once you have a view of the coming months, you can set priorities and deadlines, Write a list of the most pressing demands on your time: what needs doing now, what can be delegated, what can wait?

Set Goals

Once objectives are defined, executives can lead team discussions to review successes and challenges from the previous year. Honest and active listening fosters collaboration, allowing teams to collectively identify potential roadblocks and opportunities.

• Explore New Markets: Evaluate how emerging trends, like AI, can enhance operations or open new avenues.
• Communicate Vision: Share objectives and inspire the team with a clear vision of the year ahead, ensuring alignment with organisational goals.
• Plan Talent Needs: Identify skill gaps and strategise whether to upskill current employees or bring in new talent. Build workforce confidence by highlighting how new technologies will enhance their roles and benefit the organisation.

Q2: Build Your Personal Brand, Communication Skills & Strengthen Relationships.

Branding

A strong personal brand is crucial for executives aiming to stand out. This involves defining a unique value proposition and aligning it with communication style, online presence, and professional networks.  Think carefully about how you wish to present yourself and the purpose of your communication. Are you looking to attract the right talent or partners? Gain a promotion? Stand out in your field? Attract or assure investors? Adjust your language content and tone accordingly with the end goal in mind. You may wish to work with a mentor or coach for an objective view.

• Online Presence: Do optimise LinkedIn and other relevant platforms by sharing thought leadership content. See our previous insights on elevating LinkedIn profiles and networking effectively.
• Networking: Stay active in professional organisations and leverage opportunities to expand influence and connections.

Whether you are in the market for executive transition, executive outplacement or you are seeking to establish yourself in a new or current position, stakeholders, employees and employers, current and potential, need to understand who you are, what you represent and why they should place their faith in you.

Communicate:

Effective communication is a cornerstone of leadership success. Plans, no matter how robust, can falter without clear articulation. Executives must refine both their digital and interpersonal communication skills whether seeking a promotion or a new opportunity, or presenting an organisational strategy to the board or other stakeholders.  The way you present and express yourself could mean the difference between success and failure.

• Transparency and Updates: Develop a plan for regular, transparent communication using emails, videos, or meetings. Provide updates and implement channels for feedback.
• Public Speaking: Hone skills in presenting to diverse audiences, both in person and online. In today’s business landscape, personality and likeability are more important than ever. While some have a natural affinity for public speaking and presenting, others may need professional coaching help improve confidence and delivery.
• Non-Verbal Skills: With increasing proportions of meetings held online, mastering the art of creating engaging presentations and holding the attention of people who may all be sitting separately in front of laptops in different time zones around the world is an additional challenge. Focus on body language, not just tone, to build trust and engagement.

Strengthen relationships:

Strong relationships are the foundation of effective leadership. Executives should prioritise key connections—whether with team leaders, clients, or stakeholders.

• Review and Follow Up: Revisit unresolved issues or recent communications to ensure alignment on next steps or actions needed. Schedule meetings with key stakeholders to maintain momentum and address emerging concerns.
• Support Teams: Collaborate with HR and managers to identify and support struggling employees, celebrate high performers, and mitigate risks of losing top talent.
• Encourage Feedback: Maintain an open dialogue to foster trust and identify challenges at the earliest opportunity, sharing your vision, identifying challenges and explaining how you plan to overcome them, to foster trust and openness. Invite feedback and respond positively.

By weaving these practices into their routine, executives position themselves for success going into the final two quarters of the year. They will have enhanced personal performance, strengthened relationships, and ensured their teams are aligned with strategic objectives. With clear KPIs in place, they can adjust plans to navigate challenges and capitalise on new opportunities.

The Rialto CAREER framework enables executives to structure interview responses that reveal their thinking process and leadership maturity. Rialto consultants support candidates to consider such frameworks rather than scripts to enhance their interview readiness and confidence.

Once candidates understand what an employer is evaluating, they can craft a response that addresses those needs more precisely. Practising with a skilled coach or through mock interviews also helps build fluency and confidence.

Executives should avoid generalisations and any assertions they cannot evidence and never be tempted to elaborate or fabricate under pressure, instead showing professional curiosity about any subject or aspect in which they are not confidently familiar.

C – CONTEXT: Set the Strategic Scene

Define the situation with contextual precision, showing understanding of a specific organisational challenge, market dynamics, financial constraints and stakeholder complexity.

What This Demonstrates:

• Diagnostic capability under ambiguous conditions
• Market and competitive awareness
• Understanding of organisational complexity
• Strategic perspective beyond your own function

Example:

“As CFO of a UK-listed manufacturing business during the 2022 energy crisis, we faced 40% input cost inflation while our largest competitor had just launched a price war. The board demanded quarterly profitability targets while we needed to invest £12 million in a sustainability-driven product line critical for regulatory compliance by 2025. Our workforce was change-fatigued after three restructures in 18 months.”

Why It Works:

This opening establishes credibility at board level, demonstrates market insight, recognises competing demands, and introduces the human element, signalling strategic sophistication.

A – ACCOUNTABILITY: Own Your Mandate

Clarify your personal responsibilities and measurable goals.

What This Demonstrates:

• Executive ownership mentality
• Comfort with accountability
• Clarity on deliverables and outcomes

Example:

“I was personally accountable for delivering £4 million in cost savings within 12 months while maintaining employee engagement above 70% and safeguarding the £12 million investment budget. The board tasked me with meeting quarterly EBITDA targets without compromising long-term positioning.”

Why It Works:

Using “I was accountable for” signals ownership. Quantified goals demonstrate precision and maturity in managing trade-offs.

R – ROADMAP: Show Your Strategic Reasoning.

Explain your step-by-step approach and rationale behind key decisions.

What This Demonstrates:

• Strategic thinking, not just tactical execution
• Ability to sequence interventions
• Understanding of change management dynamics
• Governance and stakeholder sophistication

Example:

“I applied a three-horizon approach. Horizon 1 (0-6 months): immediate cost containment through vendor renegotiation and operational efficiency, targeting £2 million savings while protecting R&D. I personally led monthly supplier reviews and established cross-functional cost committees. Horizon 2 (6-12 months): process automation delivering £1.5 million in labour cost savings, which I positioned as redeployment rather than redundancy, working with HR to create reskilling pathways. Horizon 3 (12-24 months): strategic investment in the new product line, for which I secured board approval by demonstrating how short-term savings funded long-term positioning. I introduced dual-dashboard reporting, one tracking quarterly performance, one tracking strategic milestones, keeping the board sighted on both.”

Why It Works:

This reveals structured decision-making, governance fluency, and people leadership.

E – EVIDENCE: Deliver Measurable Business Impact

Share measurable outcomes connecting specific metrics to business impact, such as lifting EBITDA, boosting productivity or increasing sales.

What This Demonstrates:

• Commercial judgment
• Ability to connect actions to outcomes
• Focus on what matters to shareholders and boards
• Performance discipline

Example:

“Within 12 months we delivered £4.2 million in verified savings (£200k above target), lifted EBITDA margin from 9.2% to 11.8%, and maintained employee engagement at 73%.

“The strategic investment remained on budget and on timeline. By month 18 we had secured two pilot customers for the new product line, representing £8 million in potential annual revenue. Cash conversion improved from 68% to 81%, reducing our cost of capital.”

Why It Works:

Specific numbers demonstrate precision. Multiple metrics show balanced performance. Mentioning exceeded target signals reliability. Connecting to cash conversion and cost of capital shows CFO-level sophistication. Customer validation of strategic bet shows commercial judgment.

E – EVOLUTION: Extract and Apply Leadership Learning

Analyse results and show key leadership lessons learned and how you applied them subsequently.

What This Demonstrates:

• Self-awareness and humility
• Learning agility
• Behavioural growth

Example:

“My experience highlighted three lessons. First, you can’t drive growth and major cost change at the same pace—the organisation doesn’t have the bandwidth. I learned to sequence initiatives, delivering early wins before tackling larger challenges.

“Second, I underestimated how tired the team already were from previous restructures. Once I understood that, I changed how I communicated, framing automation as a way to redeploy talent, not reduce it. That shift in language rebuilt trust quickly.

“Finally, I made board transparency a priority. I introduced a dual dashboard showing both financial performance and transformation progress, enabling honest conversations and maintaining steady support even when short-term results dipped.”

I use that same approach now in every major initiative, sequencing, language, and transparency. It’s made me a calmer, more credible leader in times of change.”

Why It Works:

This demonstrates applied learning and continuous improvement. Acknowledging the underestimation of change fatigue shows self-awareness without defensiveness. The specific, actionable lessons—and evidence that you’ve applied them since—prove the learning translated into lasting leadership capability.

R – RELEVANCE: Align to Target Employer Context

Conclude by connecting your experience to the specific role, showing you can translate experience into their strategic ambitions and organisational context.

What This Demonstrates:

• Research depth on target organisation
• Strategic alignment with their priorities
• Ability to contextualise experience
• Genuine motivation rather than transactional job search

Example:

“For your organisation, I see three points of relevance.

Firstly, your recent announcement about achieving net-zero by 2030 suggests you’ll face challenges balancing short-term performance with long-term investment. My dual-horizon framework and governance approach would apply directly. Second, your 2024 annual report highlighted integration challenges post-acquisition of [Company X]. My experience managing change fatigue and reframing transformation language would help navigate that complexity. Finally, your new Chair has emphasised board-level transparency around strategic risk. The measurement and reporting architecture I developed could potentially support that culture. This would involve implementing a dual-dashboard approach I’ve used previously that would take into account your strategic priorities, require a stakeholder audit to understand current change capacity and modelling with your CFO the financial pathways for your net-zero commitment.”

Why It Works:

This demonstrates you have done serious research, not just read the website. Referencing their annual report and Chair’s statements shows depth. Connecting three specific aspects of your experience to three aspects of their context proves relevance.

Practising this method through mock interviews using real-life experiences to respond to sector and organisation-relevant scenarios and questions allows candidates to approach high-level interviews with confidence and clarity, while enabling active listening and natural conversation, to enhance that all-important mutual instinct for cultural fit.

Executive coaching offers the opportunity for self-reflection and to identify and explore past successes and their relevance to future success aligned with the target organisations’s goals, strategies and structures.

Among all the competing critical challenges faced by CEOs on a daily basis it can be all too easy to manage with myopia – to only see what, and equally importantly, who, is directly in view. But failure to look further into the future can be costly and that includes neglecting to build a pipeline of future leaders who will ensure seamless transitions and continuous, dynamic organisational transformation. Direct costs associated with unplanned succession have been estimated at over ten times the price of an executive’s salary.

In the UK, almost half of businesses lack a formal succession plan even though by 2030, nearly a million businesses are expected to change hands due to retirement.  A fascinating Harvard Business Review study estimated that poor succession planning costs the S&P 1500 companies an eye-watering $1 trillion per year while, conversely, good planning could increase valuations of the biggest companies by up to 25%.

Prepare for handover: If the preferred successors have been identified and invested from within the organisation, they should work alongside the incumbent in the months before the transition and undergo assessment alongside the executive and HR to identify any gaps in skills, training and experience which must be filled before they take up the new position.

They should have been introduced to key stakeholders to establish working relationships and trust to ensure partnerships and teams are aware of the coming transition and confident in and familiar with the incoming leader.

If the organisation is looking for continuity and stability, the anointed successor should be fully briefed and working with HR and the board to gain full sight of all projects and responsibilities.

If the new appointee is coming in from outside of the organisation, there should ideally be a well-timed crossover where the successor joins the organisation, shadows the outgoing leader who will introduce their successor to relevant staff and partners. This period should not go on too long, or it will diminish the new appointee’s capacity to assert their own personal style and culture.

Of course, the board may be looking for a change of direction, which may come as a shock to key stakeholders. In such cases, the groundwork must be laid to prepare the workforce, customers, partners and if relevant, regulators.

Hopefully, the handover will be cordial, however there may be times when the situation is more hostile, for example if the incumbent has been fired or is going to a direct competitor, in which case key members of the teams around the outgoing leader will be key in helping smooth the transition while the CEO, other senior executives and comms teams will need to communicate with stakeholders to minimise any potential reputational damage.

Monitor and support: Once the new appointee is in place, it is essential to continue to evaluate and measure progress against KPIs and work with them to tweak any teething problems. Support them to build a team with future leadership potential to maintain the continuous cycle of development of  talent.

By taking these steps and committing to a structured leadership pipeline, organisations can plan further into the future with confidence and build adaptability and agility into business models to allow dynamic transformation while preparing for any economic or organisational shocks. None of us could have predicted the global disruption and human loss of the Covid pandemic. How many organisations have learned from it and would be able to replace stricken leaders or respond with structural and operational change to adapt models to seismic shifts such as that one? Succession planning should be loosely based on the cycle of churn for different positions, but with a pool of talent from diverse backgrounds who can step in at any time to ensure continuity and growth even as organisational objectives develop and change.

Once natural succession planning has been built into a business model it can be self-sustaining, with increasingly measurable and visible benefits. At Rialto, we find that talent that has been nurtured from within by partnering with us through  coaching or attending a  leadership development programme tend to demonstrate increased commitment and engagement minimising attrition costs and disruption. Any company that manages to keep a loyal, happy and aspirational workforce that understands hard work and impressive performance will be rewarded with meaningful promotion, will see their global reputation enhanced, productivity increase and a virtuous cycle of talent and growth. This should be balanced, however, with the introduction of fresh talent from other backgrounds, companies, sectors, industries and countries to avoid stagnation and promote dynamic cultural evolution, creativity, energy and innovation.

It’s difficult to imagine any business leader not yet open to the transformative possibilities of Generative AI. Most will already be exploring the potential or investing in it, to varying degrees.

But what impact is it having on employees and what exactly is the role of CEOs and HR heads in leading their people through this fast-evolving landscape of seemingly infinite opportunities and risks?

So far, the most cautious adopters have dipped their toes in, primarily viewing Generative AI as a tool for streamlining operations – summarising content, reducing human workforces, cutting costs. One analyst described this limited approach as an Ozempic-style organisational weight loss programme.

While that might make for a prettier bottom line in the short run, now is the time for beefing up, not slimming down. Underweight organisations will not have the agility, growth mindset or adaptive workforce to identify and seize the burgeoning AI-led opportunities to enhance, augment and strengthen their position, brand and future-focused growth and customer experience development.

There are few sectors, functions or roles that will not be affected by this revolution. Employers told a 2023 World Economic Forum survey they expect just under half of workers’ skills to be disrupted within five years. As GenAI develops at exponential speed, that estimate is looking highly conservative.

That means that companies of all sizes must prioritise their people to build agility and rapid learning systems into their business models.

How can CEOs and people leaders ensure they are priming their workforces to help them make the best uses of AI at the right time, pace and scale while minimising the risks?

Know when to automate and when to augment:

Generative AI is transforming workforces but not exactly in the way doomsayers had forecast. Yes, many roles will be displaced in the face of Gen AI’s ability to create content, code, marketing tools, conversational chatbots and data-driven insights.

The real transformative power of Generative AI, however, lies in both its accessibility – the open model means anyone who can write a question can use it – and its capacity to upskill and augment the work of humans.

Some forecasters predict that AI will do most jobs better, faster and cheaper. What does that mean for human workers?

Take the example of chatbots. They may replace the front line of call centre agents now that natural language processing has made their conversational skills so much more sophisticated.  However, their true value comes in the augmentation of bot and human. The bot can undertake the dull, repetitive tasks and work the unsocial hours while enhancing the experience of both the employee and customer. It can share personalised information and offers with the customer while enriching the data available to the human agent based on the customer’s history, wider trends and probabilities to guide the agent towards a conversation or transaction that satisfies all parties, whether through resolution of an issue or a sale.

If used properly, with training and guardrails, Generative AI can act as a highly informed and incredibly efficient co-pilot for almost all employees involved in work that involves using a computer or Smartphone which is why they all need to be confidently and actively engaged in the ongoing disruptive process affecting how work will be completed in the future .

Transforming your business model

This starts with investment in a Chief Data Office and/or a Chief Automation Officer or similar who can oversee the organisation’s customer and AI-based transformation, working closely with all c-suite leaders and especially the CEO to ensure that use and assimilation of new platforms, applications and processes are aligned with strategic objectives both in the short, medium and long term. End uses need to be defined in terms of cost and objective and ways to measure ROI identified; projects should be piloted before being scaled up and disrupted employees need to be fully informed and prepared.  The CDO/CAO will also be accountable for a robust data governance and adaptive regulation-adherent framework to minimise and mitigate inherent risks around AI such as data compliance, inaccuracy, poor data, security, privacy issues and intellectual property. They should also ensure a safe data-sharing mechanism to ensure insights, content generation and strategic scaling up of AI-powered projects are based on the most up to date, clean and complete datasets available.

Larger companies may wish to create a whole new ecosystem of data-trained leaders to ensure all teams are using their technology safely and effectively and to share data and insights vertically and horizontally.

Workforce optimisation

The CEO and people leaders will also need to work with the CDO/CAO to ensure processes are in place to constantly review their workforce’s skillbase and ensure staff are equipped, not just for the demands of 2024 or even the next fiscal year, but in alignment with strategic priorities for the known mid/long term

One way to do this is to leverage predictive analytics and data analytics to audit the workforce and identify functions , teams and even individuals who could increase their value – and job satisfaction – through upskilling.

Platforms including Gen AI-driven CRMs (customer relationship management systems) such as Salesforce Einstein have capabilities to create dynamic, upskilled workforces, identifying need and responding with personalised training or career advancement opportunities. This keeps the workforce agile and adaptable.

Introduce new skills

Generative AI’s potential for positive disruption depends on the quality of the data that goes in and the prompts used to extract insights. Employees who use it do not need to be data scientists, such is the beauty of the open model. However, the clearer and more refined their prompts, the greater the value of the Gen-AI insights that will enhance their productivity, efficiency and quality of work.

Those who upload clean data with an understanding of how that might be used will also add great value to their everyday work.

The more of this type of training provided to the workforce, the greater the ROI and employee satisfaction, creating skilled, stable, adaptable workforces, minimising attrition and attracting the best and most relevant talent. According to a PwC survey, two thirds of jobseekers considered a company’s use of cutting-edge technology when deciding where to apply. If they are looking for good use of AI, chances are they will come with a pro-tech attitude, willingness to learn and a level of skill.

Soft skills crucial to AI-based transformation such as adaptability, problem-solving, abstract thinking, creativity and empathy can be harder to teach. These are some of the skills employers should be looking for in new recruits if they are struggling to embed them into the existing workforce to fill the gaps and promote cultural change.

Foster trust to build resilience

While some employees, especially those trained in technology or science or younger recruits who have grown up around it, may embrace any opportunity to augment their own work with AI, there are sections of the workforce who may be more intimidated by technology and fearful of such a fast pace of change and the possible impact on their own careers.

Trust needs to be built from the top down to reduce these concerns. Offer flexible, human-centred training – not just digital – and ensure total transparency. Dispensing of teams or individuals whose jobs can be automated will have an unsettling ripple effect across your whole organisation.

The staff affected need a special type of transition assistance which guarantees to work with them until a new future is secure. This is an enhanced brand of transition support which only Rialto so far are pioneering globally.

Ensure any restructuring is designed openly, fairly, and with kindness. Explain the reasoning to the whole workforce and ensure they feel valued and understand the necessity and future value created by introducing technology, the security and opportunities for growth and, if you are able, explain that you are or will be offering upskilling to all employees who will be working alongside AI in the future. Open a dialogue, invite questions and answer them as honestly as possible.

Ideally, this should come directly from the CEO. Vacuums in knowledge will be filled by mistrust and misinformation. Take control of the messaging around AI, working closely with your operations and HR leaders.

We are only just starting to understand the true transformative potential of Gen AI. It’s no longer sufficient for CEOs and other c-suite executives to delegate responsibility for IT software and systems. They need to understand what is happening now, what is on the horizon and lead from the front, with compassion, confidence and strategic acumen.

If you require professional, structured support from our experienced team of AI, change and transition management experts, or would like to develop a greater personal understanding of Generative AI, its capabilities and risks, do get in touch.