If you’re responsible for learning and development in an evolving organisation, you’re probably juggling a lot right now. One of the biggest challenges may be keeping leadership development relevant and future focused. In this post, we’re sharing the five leadership skills your organisation needs in 2025, and how they need to evolve at different leadership levels.
Many organisations are adapting to new technologies like AI, dealing with constant change, and looking for ways to drive innovation and strengthen their culture. Through all of this, leaders need to inspire their teams and deliver results.
It’s perhaps no surprise then, that many traditional leadership development approaches, even the tried and tested ones, can feel out of step with what’s needed today. Expectations of leaders have shifted dramatically in recent years, and leadership development
approaches need to evolve to keep up with organisational transformation efforts.
According to Harvard Business Publishing’s 2024 Global Leadership Development Study, leaders today need to be more adaptable, emotionally intelligent, and equipped to lead through complexity. They need to be able to shift their approach, balance competing demands, and continuously grow themselves and others in a rapidly changing world.
So what skills matter most now?
Based on our work with clients and the latest leadership research, we’ve developed the CRAFT™ Leadership Framework. It captures the five foundational skill areas every leader needs to succeed, in 2025 and beyond.
C = Communication: Communicating clearly, handling conflict, and influencing effectively.
R = Resilience: Staying grounded under pressure, managing ambiguity, supporting others through challenge, and strengthening both personal and business resilience.
A = Authenticity: Leading with emotional intelligence, acting with integrity, building trust, and role-modelling ethical leadership grounded in strong personal values.
F = Future: Continuously developing themselves and others, setting direction, and shaping what comes next.
T = Transformation: Enabling change, challenging the status quo, and driving cultural and organisational shifts.
These five areas reflect the leadership skills needed to succeed now and in the future. But the way each skill shows up will depend on the leadership level. As people step into new roles and take on more responsibility, these capabilities need to grow and evolve.
- Communication evolves from clear, confident self-expression and active listening at individual level, to influencing, coaching, and eventually inspiring and aligning entire organisations with strategic clarity.
- Resilience starts with managing your own workload and stress, then expands to supporting others, modelling calm under pressure, and ultimately sustaining team and business resilience through change and complexity.
- Authenticity begins with knowing your values and acting with integrity, and grows into building trust, psychological safety, and culture through emotionally intelligent, values-led leadership.
- Future orientation develops from personal development and understanding team goals, to developing others, shaping strategy, and ultimately creating long-term impact by building future-ready cultures and leaders.
- Transformation starts with embracing small improvements and new ideas, then grows into leading change at team, cross-functional, and finally organisational levels to reimagine how work gets done.
Below, we’ve mapped out how each of these five skill foundations shows up at different leadership levels – from individual contributor to experienced leader:
We’d Love to Help You
If you’re evolving your leadership programmes and want something that speaks to the challenges your leaders are facing now, and prepares them for what’s coming next, we’d love to help.
At Willow & Puddifoot, we ‘craft’ leadership programmes to suit your business. Every organisation is different, and we take the time to understand your goals, your people, and your culture, so we can build something that truly fits.
About the Author
Louise Puddifoot is the founder of Willow & Puddifoot, a training provider for those seeking transformative learning and development experiences. With a vibrant learning and development career spanning over two decades, Louise’s expertise lies in leadership and management development. She is passionate about enabling potential and catalysing growth in individuals and businesses alike.