Building adaptive leaders: rethinking leadership development in the age of uncertainty

Purpose Addressing the critical need for adaptive leadership in increasingly uncertain organisational contexts, this conceptual paper aims to propose a comprehensive framework for leadership development. It integrates existing theories with novel components to equip leaders with skills for navigating complex environments while safeguarding employee well-being. Beyond the theoretical contribution, the framework aims to guide leadership practice by offering actionable insights that enable organisations to cultivate their resilience in the face of uncertainty and change. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on a thorough literature review of organisational uncertainty, adaptive leadership and development interventions, this paper synthesises research to conceptualise a framework for cultivating adaptive leadership behaviour. It then analyses the potential of leadership coaching and mental health awareness training, selected for their alignment with key adaptive leadership components and prior relevance during uncertain times. Findings The proposed “adaptive leadership behaviour development framework” emphasises four key components: accurately perceiving situational demands, maintaining diverse behavioural strategies, balancing opposing demands and flexibly applying adaptive leadership behaviours. It links these to leadership development and highlights the importance of context-sensitive assessments and organisational support. The analysis demonstrates how coaching and mental health training can foster specific aspects such as strategic thinking and situational awareness. Originality/value This paper makes a unique theoretical contribution by proposing a novel, integrated framework for adaptive leadership development. It systematically bridges the two distinct theoretical streams, adaptive leadership theory and workplace well-being interventions, addressing a critical gap in the literature: the lack of a structured model for cultivating adaptive leadership through formal, context-sensitive interventions. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, it is the first study to theorise the specific mechanisms by which interventions such as leadership coaching and mental health awareness training foster adaptive behaviours. This work provides a foundation for practitioners and scholars by offering a new lens for understanding the development of leadership that safeguards employee well-being.