2026: What Really Matters As the year draws to a close, organisations are laying out plans for their 2026 strategies. But with many demands competing for their attention, where should leaders focus to make the biggest impact in the months ahead?

Here, seven different experts highlight the top areas business leaders should prioritise to drive growth and success next year.

Courageous leadership
Christopher O. H. Williams, business transformation consultant and author of C.O.U.R.A.G.E., predicts that in 2026, chaos and volatility will be the operating climate. "The brittle plans, scramble tactics, and performative values exposed in 2025 must give way to agile strategy, principled leadership, stronger ecosystems, and targeted, bold investments," he argues. Williams recommends that leaders carry out rigorous business reviews to scale what works and exit what doesn't. "Anticipate multiple futures rather than clinging to a single forecast; the best answers may be approaches you've never used before." He adds that there is room for measured growth and selective big bets. Not every company will thrive; bold investments, including acquisitions, should be pursued only when opportunities are truly compelling, balancing ambition with prudence. Williams goes on to say that courage will be the defining leadership requirement next year. "Keep a dual horizon: navigate the next 12-24 months with discipline while building the business, brand, and team you want in 3-5 years. The enduring verdict on our tenure will be whether we model leadership that inspires future generations of leaders well beyond 2026."

3 Ps: Profit, people, planet
Ben Hughes, musician, artist manager, and author of Make Music Your Business, agrees that expansion will be a necessity for nearly all businesses in 2026. He explains, "For me, expansion is all about embedding AI and technology in ways that actually create value, rather than complicate existing processes or invade our privacy." He also emphasises that resilience and adaptability will remain non-negotiable. "My work has taught me that the ability to pivot fast and respond quickly is everything. Next year's priorities should be scenario planning, flexible decision-making, and empowering teams to experiment." Hughes also lists continuous learning - and unlearning - as key. "Outdated practices, as well as a failure to recognise and be open-minded to new ones, get in the way. Focus on fostering collaboration, curiosity, and growth at every level." Finally, sustainability and ethics aren't optional - they're part of long-term success. 2026 demands leaders who are adaptive, inclusive, tech-savvy, resilient, and human-focused. "The 3 Ps are what drive me: it's important to keep one eye on profit, the other on people, with the net benefit helping the planet in the process," Hughes sums up.

Balancing the human connection with AI
For Lovelda Vincenzi, co-founder of The Speaker Awards & Summit, the biggest lesson from 2025 is that AI is here to stay, presenting both incredible opportunity and risk. "The companies thriving are using it to improve customer experience and relationships. The ones struggling are creating inauthentic, disconnected experiences," she says. "In my work hosting and moderating corporate events, I've seen something else become clear. Even in this digital age, the real power of in-person gatherings isn't the information or the experience. It's the opportunity to connect authentically." Going into 2026, leaders need to think differently about the role of people. "We can't treat great people like replaceable machines if we want exceptional company cultures. The focus should be on using AI thoughtfully whilst doubling down on human connection," Vincenzi stresses. The question isn't whether to adopt AI. It's how to adopt it in a way that enhances relationships rather than replacing them. She believes that "leaders who get this balance right will be the ones leading their industries."

Championing care
Echoing the importance of the human factor, Nic Marks, statistician, speaker, and author of Happiness is a Serious Business, says that in 2026, the most effective leaders will champion what makes work human. "After years of disruption, fatigue, and change, the challenge now is to rebuild energy and purpose - not with slogans, but through small, consistent habits that sustain trust, learning, and wellbeing," he outlines. For Marks, the word to hold onto is care - care for customers and clients, care for teams and colleagues, and care for themselves. He continues, "Leaders who forget self-care quickly run out of the capacity to care for others. True leadership in 2026 will be measured less by control and more by compassion - creating the conditions where people can thrive together, they are happy and successful."Marks predicts that "we will also see more emphasis on real-time feedback and emotional intelligence as essential leadership skills. Measuring how teams feel and talking about it regularly will become the hallmark of healthy, high-performing organisations next year and beyond."

Turning reflection into renewal
Cassie Davison, author of Stand Out Hospitality and business coach, agrees that 2026 should be the year leaders turn reflection into renewal. After years of reacting, it's time to rebuild with intention, simplifying, refocusing, and leading with meaning. She explains that it means putting belonging back at the heart of business strategy. "We need to create spaces, physical and cultural, where people feel proud to be part of something real. The focus should be on sustainable growth, strong leadership standards, and storytelling that feels human again." Davison also notes that leaders will need to nurture creativity as much as consistency, empowering teams to think differently and take ownership. "Investing in emotional intelligence, communication, and shared purpose will drive loyalty in a way systems never can." She concludes that "above all, next year should be about rediscovering joy in what we do, rebuilding not just better businesses, but better ways of being in business."

Embracing accessibility
Leaders need to move beyond compliance thinking and embrace accessibility as a competitive advantage in 2026, highlights Matisse Hamel-Nelis, digital accessibility consultant and author of Accessible Communications. "Start by auditing your current communications. Not just your website, but emails, social media, internal documents, and presentations. You'll likely find gaps everywhere," she says. Hamel-Nelis urges leaders to invest in training their entire communications team. "Everyone who writes a social media post, creates a slide deck, or sends a company-wide email should understand accessibility basics. This includes using descriptive link text instead of 'click here,' writing meaningful alt text for images, and structuring documents with proper headings." She also suggests making accessibility part of the vendor requirements. "When you hire agencies or buy software, insist on deliverables that are accessible. Your purchasing power can drive industry-wide change. Finally, involve people with disabilities in your process," she continues. "Hire them as consultants, employees, and testers. Their lived experience will catch issues that automated tools miss and help you understand real-world impact." The organisations that prioritise accessible communications in 2026 won't just avoid legal risks. They'll build stronger brands, reach larger audiences, and create more inclusive workplaces. "That's not just good ethics. It's good business," Hamel-Nelis concludes.

Restructuring and redefining
According to Gina Battye, founder and CEO of the Psychological Safety Institute, 2026 will be a year of restructuring for many organisations; reshuffles, belt-tightening, trimming down. But there's the opportunity most leaders miss. "Restructure isn't just about moving boxes on an org chart. It's a reset. A chance to redesign how your organisation really works. The smartest leaders will use it to rebuild culture, not just structure," she says. "They'll rethink roles, redefine leadership expectations, and set clear standards for behaviour. Because when you strip things back, what truly drives performance isn't process or profit. It's people." In the coming months, leaders should focus on giving their people everything they need to flourish: self-awareness, resilience, and the communication skills to navigate any workplace situation. "When people have these tools, teams pull together through change instead of drifting apart," Battye points out. "Restructure isn't about control. It's about clarity. Get that right, and 2026 won't just be the year you restructured. It'll be the year your people came alive again," she sums up.