The only constant is change, and today, change seems to be everywhere. Nearly every organization is facing pressure to implement generative AI, adapt to a shifting economic landscape, respond to labor market disruptions, and more.

As a CEO, you understand the importance of adapting quickly. But resistant teams and poor coordination across silos can prevent your organization from being as agile as it needs to be.

These issues may seem endemic to most organizations, but it is possible to break free of them. It starts with whether your leadership team has received the coaching needed to guide employees effectively through major change.

Why Change Adoption Depends on Strong Leadership

If change initiatives rely on the whole organization’s cumulative effort, is leadership coaching make-or-break?

The short answer is yes. The strengths of the people on your leadership team determine whether they make strategic decisions, communicate about the change well, and energize employees to realize it.

Leadership is responsible for change management, a term that encapsulates everything from keeping a project on schedule to supporting employee morale. According to Prosci, 88% of projects led with excellent change management meet their objectives, while only 13% of those with poor change management do. The same research found that leadership teams with good change management skills are also far more likely to complete projects on time (65%) and under budget (71%).

Strong leadership is also vital for improving cross-functional collaboration. Major change projects require a variety of teams and departments to work together, but many groups are so accustomed to working in silos that they no longer know how to collaborate effectively. Leadership sets up communication practices and processes that make genuine collaboration possible.

Meanwhile, poor leadership often results in higher resistance to change and drops in productivity. Research has found that mistrust in an organization’s leadership to be the most common reason for change resistance, and one survey reports that 71% of employees misdirect their energy during periods of change because leadership-created plans aren’t relevant.

Leadership Skills Required for Change Management

Successful change leadership depends on whether your leadership team has a few core skills.

Clear communication is perhaps the most obvious one. If leaders can’t articulate what the change is, the reason for it, and why their teams can trust them to lead through it, employees are far more likely to hesitate. In one survey, the most common reasons employees cited for change resistance were mistrust in the organization (41%) and lack of awareness around the reason for change (39%).

In addition to being able to communicate well, leaders of changing organizations must be able to identify healthy risks and approach them with resilience. Your leadership team should be able to choose worthwhile risks for your business to take and embrace them with confidence rather than letting a fearful mindset hold them back.

If a healthy risk doesn’t work out, resilience becomes essential. Leaders need the ability to adapt, regain momentum, and guide the organization toward the next opportunity. This requires a growth mindset — one that sees setbacks as learning opportunities rather than failures.

Growth mindsets rarely develop organically, but with good coaching, nearly anyone can build one.

How CEO Leadership Coaching Develops These Skills

The leadership skills required for change management are rooted in mindset. CEO leadership coaching helps you intentionally develop the mindset you want to lead with.

High-quality, mindset-based coaching enables you to identify unproductive thought patterns and change them to more productive ones. This shift leads to lasting improvements in how you communicate, tackle challenges, and respond to risks.

With effective coaching, you develop compassionate communication habits that allow you to address employees’ concerns about a change and energize them around it.

Coaching also helps you confront the unhelpful mindsets that create resistance or hesitation when big decisions need to be made. Leaders who have undergone CEO leadership coaching gain the confidence to make strategic decisions quickly and stick to them.

And as inevitable complications arise, coaching equips leaders with the healthy mindsets needed to bounce back, adapt, and continue guiding their organizations toward success.

Why Change Management Training for Leaders Matters

Research into leadership coaching has found clear, positive impacts on major organizational changes like M&As. Organizations that invest in change management training for leaders typically experience better communication and improvements in overall workplace culture, even during stressful transition periods.

On the other hand, organizations with uncoached or ineffective leadership are more likely to see employees experience resistance or change fatigue. Capterra found that 83% of employees suffering from change fatigue report not being adequately supported by leadership during changes. They also report inconsistent communication and decision-making from leadership, with 93% saying their employer backtracked on at least one change, resulting in lost trust.

When employees lose trust, lack clarity, and start feeling change fatigue, it impacts the business. Thirty-two percent of change-fatigued employees reported becoming less productive, and 54% said they considered looking for a new job.

Statistics like these make it clear that leadership coaching is a business imperative, especially in times of change. If leaders aren’t properly prepared, the impacts throughout the organization could be drastic.

Preparing Your Leadership Team for Successful Change

If your organization is about to embark on a major change, consider whether your leadership team has advanced communication skills and a mindset conducive to agility. If you have any doubts, that’s a strong sign it’s time to invest in CEO leadership coaching.

Of course, not every leadership coach delivers the same results. Look for coaches with a proven track record of success and a program built on science-backed frameworks. Prioritize organizations with expertise in change management training for leaders and a focus on long-term mindset development. Coaches who can align their curriculum with your business priorities will be best positioned to support you throughout your change initiative.

Thriving in Times of Constant Change

In a world where organizations are constantly under pressure to evolve, the only businesses that will survive are those that invest in change management. Ultimately, that means investing in CEO leadership coaching.

Leadership coaches are equipped to give you and the rest of your leadership team the leadership skills required for change management, including a mindset able to navigate change agilely, decisively, and successfully.

Contact The Pacific Institute to learn how you can help your organization thrive no matter what changes come your way.