Institute For Adaptivity
Can we change as fast as the world around us?
of leaders say developing the ability of their organization and workforce to adapt at today's speed is critical.
say they are making great progress.
The Institute For Adaptivity explores how people, leaders, teams, and organizations develop the capacity to transform and navigate what comes next — without losing what matters.
For decades, organizations have relied on transformation programs, change management, and training to move from one relatively stable state to another.
But the destination keeps moving.
Technology evolves. Markets shift. Roles change. Expectations change. Strategies turn. New possibilities emerge.
of respondents in Deloitte's 2026 research believe their organizations manage change effectively.
believe they are highly effective at meeting the continuous learning needs of their workforce.
The challenge is becoming less about managing the next change and more about developing the capacity to keep learning, adapting, and transforming.
That capacity is what we call adaptivity.
Definition
Adaptability is often understood as our ability to adjust when circumstances change.
Adaptivity goes deeper.
It is the capacity to sense what is changing, examine what may need to change in us, learn and experiment in real time, and transform for what lies ahead — while remaining anchored in what matters.
That transformation may involve strategy, systems, and capabilities.
But it may also require changes in:
Adaptivity begins with four foundational questions:
What is changing around us?
What needs to change in us?
What must not be lost?
What might we try next?
The principles aren't new.
The conditions are.
The Institute For Adaptivity does not claim to have invented a new management theory.
Instead, we explore and connect established ideas about how people and systems respond when existing answers are no longer enough — and ask what they mean in a world of continuous change.
Ronald Heifetz and colleagues distinguished between technical problems, which can often be solved using existing knowledge and expertise, and adaptive challenges, which require people themselves to learn, change, and develop new capacity.
Sometimes the challenge is not simply knowing what to do.
We may need to become capable of doing what the new situation requires.
Robert Kegan and Lisa Lahey's work helps explain why sincere intentions often fail to create lasting change.
We can genuinely want one thing while simultaneously protecting competing commitments, assumptions, habits, or identities that keep the existing system in place.
The question shifts from "What should we do differently?" to:
"What may be keeping us from changing?"
Today, AI and accelerating disruption are pushing these ideas further.
Deloitte describes a shift away from episodic change toward adaptive capability embedded in everyday work — where people continually experiment, learn, receive feedback, and evolve.
Organizations successfully cultivating this approach were 2.4x more likely to report stronger financial results and more meaningful work.
What we explore
Research Radar
The Institute curates important research and ideas rather than simply publishing another stream of content.
Each Research Thread answers three questions:
Featured — Deloitte, 2026
Adaptivity is becoming a core organizational capability, not simply a response to change. Organizations need people and systems able to continuously learn, reconfigure, experiment, and create value as conditions shift.
As technology becomes easier to replicate, what human capabilities must we intentionally strengthen to remain distinctive and thrive through continuous change?
Deloitte, 2026
Instead of preparing people for each new wave of change, build their capacity to keep sensing, learning, and responding as conditions evolve.
Are we getting better at managing change — or becoming better at changing?
HBR / Egon Zehnder, February 2026
Don't just become better at recovering. Become better at evolving.
What if the goal isn't to bounce back, but to become capable of what comes next?
2026 Global Human Capital Trends Report
Deloitte's research finds an interesting tension: respondents largely wanted to preserve purpose and belonging, while seeing greater need to change innovation and open communication.
The report goes even further, suggesting that the adaptivity organizations seek may ultimately come more through culture than through process or structure.
One of the most interesting findings in Deloitte's 2026 research is that people do not necessarily want everything about organizational culture to change.
Respondents strongly favored preserving purpose, mission, and belonging, while seeing greater need to evolve areas such as innovation and open communication.
Deloitte ultimately suggests that the adaptivity organizations seek may come more through culture than process or structure.
That captures an important principle of the Institute:
Change what needs to change.
Stay anchored in what matters.
Research can illuminate the challenge.
Transformation still has to be lived.
Coaching, advisory and facilitation services are provided by The Adaptivity Monk and Adaptive Leaders.
Adaptive Leaders is a partner organization helping leaders, teams, and organizations translate adaptivity into practice.
Join an upcoming Adaptive Leader Journey, explore an Adaptive Sprint, or bring us the adaptive challenge facing your organization.
Perhaps you already know what needs to change.
Perhaps the answer is not yet clear.
Or perhaps the deeper question is whether you, your team, or your organization are becoming capable of what the next season will require.
