HR and L&D Leaders Identify Five Challenges Exemplary Leaders Must Navigate in 2026

If one word defined 2025, it was demanding. Our research throughout the year showed that leaders at every level, from individual contributors to senior executives, reported feeling stretched by relentless change, competing priorities, and rising uncertainty. Organizations found themselves straddling two worlds at once: accelerating into an AI-enabled future while simultaneously returning to pre-pandemic norms like a renewed focus on in-person work.

The result? A year that left many leaders, and their teams, feeling off balance as they reacted to relentless change.

As 2026 begins, leaders have an opportunity to reset. The question is no longer whether change will continue, but how leaders can create stability, meaning, and shared purpose amid constant motion.

To better understand what lies ahead, we surveyed 1,500 HR and L&D leaders about the challenges they expect to face in 2026. Unsurprisingly, continued change topped the list. But woven between familiar concerns about technology and transformation was something more hopeful: a strong desire for leadership that rebuilds trust, strengthens culture, and balances performance with genuine care for people.

Here are the five most anticipated challenges of 2026 and how exemplary leaders can rise to meet them.

1. Change Isn’t Slowing Down

Change remains the defining feature of today’s workplace. 66% of respondents anticipate even more change in the year ahead.

66% anticipate more change in 2026.

The calendar turning to January 1 doesn’t erase the forces reshaping work. Market volatility, evolving work models, and rapid innovation will continue to test leaders’ adaptability and resolve.

What’s striking is that while many employees question their organization’s ability to adapt, they remain optimistic about their own futures within it. This presents a critical leadership opportunity. Exemplary leaders don’t simply manage change, they Model the Way by inviting others into the process. By communicating openly, explaining decisions, and involving people where possible, leaders can transform uncertainty into shared ownership and momentum.

2. Organizational Culture is at a Crossroads

The turbulence of 2025 took a measurable toll on organizational culture. Many employees experienced a sharp shift from the people-first leadership early in the pandemic to a year marked by return-to-office mandates, hiring freezes, reorganizations, and expanding workloads—often without the training and reskilling needed to thrive, or even just survive, with a new job description.

30% report organizational culture improvement as a top challenge for 2026.

These pressures compounded, contributing to record levels of stress and disengagement. While many leaders made difficult decisions in response to external forces, 2026 offers a chance to pause and reassess.

Exemplary leaders recognize that culture is not a “nice to have,” it’s a performance multiplier. By reaffirming shared values, demonstrating care, and aligning expectations with support, leaders can rebuild trust and restore balance. When people feel valued and supported, they are far more likely to bring their best selves to work.

3. Communication Remains the Most Critical Leadership Skill

One message from employees has remained consistent: they want more, and better, communication from their leaders.

64% report communication as the most important leadership skill.

Change becomes far more difficult when it happens to people rather than with them. A lack of transparency erodes trust and weakens culture, especially when strategy shifts, reorganizations, or work model changes arrive without context.

Exemplary leaders inspire confidence by sharing what they know, acknowledging what they don’t, and explaining the “why” behind decisions. Even when the future is uncertain, honesty builds credibility. Saying, “We don’t have all the answers yet, but here’s what we’re considering,” invites collaboration and signals respect. Often, the insight or innovation leaders need most comes from voices that would otherwise remain unheard. As an organization, you are in it together and transparency is how you Inspire a Shared Vision.

4. Technology Education Must Become Intentional

While 2025 focused on experimenting with new technologies, 2026 will demand clarity and capability. 35% of respondents identified learning new technology as a top challenge.

35% report learning technology as a top challenge.

AI and other emerging tools hold enormous potential, but without guidance, they can just as easily create confusion and anxiety. Exemplary leaders take a deliberate approach: they clarify how technology supports strategy, provide meaningful training, and ensure tools are used in ways that enhance—not replace—human judgment and connection.

The goal isn’t adoption for adoption’s sake. It’s enabling people to use technology confidently and ethically to do their best work.

5. Harnessing Optimism to Elevate Engagement

Despite the challenges of the past year, optimism remains high. 73% percent of respondents reported feeling positive about their organization’s future. This optimism can be harnessed into engagement through increased communication, training opportunities, and recognition.

30% of L&D professionals identify employee engagement as a top challenge.

Optimism itself is a powerful leadership asset. Leaders who Encourage the Heart by recognizing contributions, investing in development, and equipping people with the tools they need can convert hope into sustained performance that propels your organization forward in the coming year.

The challenge for 2026 is not generating more optimism, it’s protecting and channeling it. When leaders align vision, values, and action, optimism becomes resilience, and resilience becomes results.

Leading into the Future

If 2025 reinforced one truth, it’s that change is constant. What differentiates organizations that thrive is not the absence of disruption, but the presence of exemplary leadership.

As this year unfolds, leaders who invest in their people, communicate with clarity, and lead with both courage and compassion will be best positioned to succeed, strengthening not only their bottom line, but the trust and commitment that make long-term performance possible.

Wiley’s suite of professional solutions provides a structure and common language to help empower entire organizations with the skills needed to get to the next level. From building better teams with The Five Behaviors, and improving understanding to create engaged, collaborative, and adaptive cultures with Everything DiSC® on Catalyst, helping you make confident hiring decisions with PXT Select, or unlocking your leaders’ potential to drive team and organizational performance with 360 feedback from The Leadership Challenge, Wiley has innovative solutions that help make the workplace a better place.

Wiley Workplace Intelligence conducts in-depth research on key workplace issues by gathering insights from individual contributors, managers, and leaders. Wiley Workplace Intelligence then analyzes these findings to provide actionable solutions that are shared in our blog.