5 ways to make assertive decisions in uncertain times, according to business leaders

We live in uncertain times. From geopolitical tension, macroeconomic instability, and digital transformation, business leaders must develop strategies that help their organizations survive and thrive in a complex world.

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So what’s the key to making assertive decisions in volatile and uncertain times? Five business leaders give us their top tips.

1. Build dynamic capacity

Gabriela Vogel, vice president analyst in Gartner’s Executive Leadership of Digital Business practice, said her company’s research stresses the importance of developing tech-enabled flexibility.

“You must be able to adapt your organization to all of the crazy changes happening around the world. And part of that approach is achieved with technology,” she said.

Vogel told ZDNET that dynamic capacity is the ability of humans and machines to work flexibly together, rapidly adapting and growing to meet changing market conditions.

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Dynamic capacity relies on digital technologies, such as agentic AI and robotics, to enable faster decision-making processes, enhance agility, and unlock operational capabilities.

“Business leaders with dynamic capacity can rebalance operations, increase or decrease production, or acquire and divest in new business lines,” she said.

Gartner research suggests CEOs want to use AI to create more dynamic capacity in five core areas of the business: geographic scope, business and operating models, customer engagement, risk management, and their people.

“Effective companies can build dynamic capacity in terms of risk, people management, operations, and even leadership,” Vogel said.

2. Lean on a coalition of talent

Rom Kosla, CIO at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), said business leaders shouldn’t spend too much time overthinking because getting started is crucial to being assertive.

“You can pivot, but you have to start first,” he said. “The starting point on any journey is the crucial first step.”

Kosla told ZDNet that leaders should gather some facts, create a coalition of willing people who want to make a decision, and stay open to being wrong, recognizing that they might have to pivot.

“There have been a lot of times I’ve seen this during my career — that inaction loses momentum, people have no idea where you want to go, and so it perpetuates in the organization,” he said.

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Kosla said AI is a good example. People across HPE were keen to dive in, but he wanted to ensure a coalition of talented players would bring momentum and great results.

“I was like, ‘You’re not starting just because you want to start. You’ve got to start with the right to play and the right to win.’ Once the right people were involved, the innovations exploded from that point,” he said.

“If you wait too long, in the case of ‘We’re only going to do it when we have all the money and the right vendors on board,’ then you start and quickly lose momentum. So you’ve got to make some strong bets. But you have to make those bets with your team.”

3. Be prepared to course correct

Antony Hausdoerfer, group CIO at auto breakdown specialist the AA, said humility and conviction are crucial to decision-making processes.

Yes, make a decision, but be prepared to change your stance when the data suggests an alternative route.

“You must be aware of everything that’s going on, but then you’ve got to make a decision and execute,” he said.

“However, you’ve got to be able to turn around and say, ‘That may not be the right decision,’ if that is what it turns out to be, and then course correct. And you should use data to inform that process.”

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Hausdoerfer told ZDNet that business leaders must listen to others when they bring fresh insights to the table.

“If someone says, ‘That thing that you thought was a good idea? I’ve got some data points here that prove perhaps it isn’t,’ then you need to be able to consider their view,” he said.

“Instead of saying, ‘I’m not going to listen to you, because I’m right,’ you should take on that data. You might not necessarily change your decision, but you must check if you can use the data to improve what you’ve done so far.”

4. Simulate potential scenarios

Joe Depa, global chief innovation officer at consultancy EY, is another business leader who says exploiting data is the best way to make decisions at times of exponential transformation.

“To deal with uncertainty, and particularly a pace of change that none of us have ever seen before, you need to be able to have data to simulate a multitude of scenarios that could potentially happen all at once,” he said.

“When a leadership team has the data and the ability to predict and simulate what the impact would be of different scenarios on their profit and loss figures, then it allows them to make much quicker and more informed decisions.”

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Depa told ZDNet that business leaders who can make these data-led decisions will be able to differentiate themselves from competitors in uncertain times.

“It’s not about whether the change is going to happen. Change is going to happen even faster than we can think about. We don’t even know what’s going to happen next week, let alone next year,” he said.

“And so the question is, ‘Are you able to rapidly use your data and scenario plan for what happens if that change happens?’ If you can, then you’ll be able to make quick decisions and be the first to market to adapt to change.”

5. Reach out to innovators

Tim Chilton, managing consultant at Ordnance Survey (OS), the UK’s national mapping service, said working for an organization that’s 234 years old brings proven decision-making processes.

“Ordnance Survey is lucky because we’re so well established. We’re not a startup trying to find our way with a limited budget or a small team,” he said.

However, Chilton told ZDNet that OS is open to new ideas that can help improve its approach, including a Geovation Lab that looks for innovative ideas.

“The lab runs an accelerator program on an annual basis. It’s helping others manage their risk as a startup, rather than us necessarily doing that ourselves,” he said.

“We provide armour around their shoulders to say, ‘Look, here’s some money, some time, some experience to help you develop your geospatial concept or your startup.'”

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Chilton said these kinds of initiatives are crucial for OS because the organization is always looking for new ways to boost efficiency or increase its product range.

“I like working for Ordnance Survey because it’s innovative, but it’s been here for a long time, and will be for a long time to come,” he said.

“We’re not going to make any rash decisions, but we are going to keep challenging and leading the geospatial conversation in the UK.”

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