An End-Of-Year Message from Innovationedge and a Look at What’s Ahead
As 2025 comes to a close, we’ve been looking back at the conversations, challenges, and wins we’ve shared with other leaders over the last year. This purposeful collaboration has had a real impact on the organizations we serve as well as our own team – and it’s reinforced a belief we’ve held onto since Innovationedge was founded.
It’s the belief that by nurturing partnerships with intention, we open up new pathways for innovation and build more resilient frameworks. When smart, committed people share their ideas generously and approach challenges with curiosity, powerful breakthroughs happen.
To close out the year, we’re shining a spotlight on some of the patterns we’ve noticed emerge in our work with leaders across industries. These are themes that have shown up again and again, and that continue to contribute to the forward momentum we all hope to see in our organizations.
Transparency and Clarity Are Necessary for Transformational Change
Now more than ever, teams need to understand how decisions are made. As AI and machine learning blur the lines between human-led and tech-fueled initiatives, many organizations are wading through ambiguous waters, and teams are eager for clear, coherent direction.
This requires leaders who are willing to be transparent. High-performing teams are built on trust, and people respond well to leaders who share their thinking processes, personal constraints, and lessons learned. These actions help others “buy in” to the big-picture vision. They also create a sense of psychological safety that empowers emerging leaders within organizations to step up and share their own ideas freely.
Human-Centered Leadership Fosters Sustainable Performance
Teams can’t deliver their best work when they’re stretched thin. The high burnout rates we’ve seen in recent years have led leaders to rethink workload capacity. Organizations that invested in employee well-being saw improved retention rates and stronger engagement, even when “quiet quitting” was a trending topic.
However, the most effective leaders do more than track metrics like meeting density and attendance as early indicators of burnout. They build environments where people can do great work without sacrificing their health or humanity – and they model sustainable habits themselves. Simple choices like protecting focus time, taking real breaks, and openly discussing their own limitations give other team members permission to follow suit.
Collaboration Multiplies Resources and Impact
In recent years, leaders have had to pivot, adapt, and rethink nearly every workflow and system their organizations are built on. From the COVID-19 pandemic to ongoing supply chain issues and uncertain economic stability, there’s been a lot of pressure to increase resilience – often through building strategic redundancies. Another angle we’ve seen many leaders embrace this year is open innovation.
The concept in itself is simple. Collaboration expands the collective skill set. It lifts the limitations imposed on a single team or organization by combining capabilities and diluting experimentation risks. It makes it easier to test out new ideas in a lower-pressure environment.
When teams and external partners collaborate, they bring together viewpoints that don’t normally intersect. External collaborators add market insight, consumer perspective, and technical expertise. Varied backgrounds and experiences promote richer idea generation and help teams see opportunities they may have missed. All of this leads to better questions, accelerated iteration cycles, and stronger solutions that can withstand volatile environments.
Where We’re Focused in 2026
Next year, we’re expanding the ways we partner with organizations to build the leadership and people capabilities they need to thrive in the future. We’ll continue to design programs that help professionals lead with intention, strengthen their decision-making skills, and build resilience. Our team will also share new innovation and culture frameworks to help organizations construct repeatable and reliable systems that support growth.
As we anticipate the challenges leaders will face in 2026, we’re focused on offering practical advice, resources, and tools to support them every step of the way. If this topic resonates with you, we invite you to explore Innovationedge’s coaching services for individuals, teams, and organizations, or join us for one of our upcoming events.
Our What’s Not Working @ Work? Summit will be held on May 14th at the Brunswick Corporation Headquarters in Mettawa, Illinois. Hosted by Cheryl Perkins, CEO of Innovationedge, and Ian Ziskin, President of EXec EXcel Group, this one-day event is the perfect opportunity to explore the top issues we’re seeing in today’s work environment and uncover tangible solutions.
Participants will also have the opportunity to add their perspective to a recap article that Human Resource Executive® magazine has already agreed to publish. We are limiting this event to just 50 attendees, and registration ends on March 13th, so we encourage you to reserve your spot before it’s too late.
We also have several webinars planned for 2026, including two AI Literacy courses presented by Innovationedge’s very own AI and Automation Leader, Rich Gilbert:
- AI Literacy 101: Fundamental First Steps
- AI Literacy 102: Owning Your Future State Strategies
More details about each of these webinars will be announced soon. You can follow along with Innovationedge on our social media channels or keep an eye on our events page for updates.
Looking Ahead With Purpose
As we conclude 2025, we do so with a deep sense of gratitude for the partnerships we’ve been fortunate enough to nurture and the insights we’ve exchanged with each other. This year reinforced collaboration’s role in building systems and capabilities that endure. We’re looking forward to building on this momentum in 2026 and continuing this incredible journey together. From all of us at Innovationedge, we wish you a happy holiday season and a prosperous new year.