Leadership in Times of Uncertainty

“What can I do, as a company CEO or an HR professional, when I’m faced with this entire wall of challenges [that we witness today]? My answer is: start by shaping organizational culture through Leadership…” – with these words, Andrew Rozhdestvensky, Executive Director of the Center for Leadership of UCU, opened his talk at the “Strategic HR: Business Forum for HR & Leaders”, held on June 17, 2025, in Kyiv.

This was not just another presentation on trends, models, or motivational slogans. It was a conversation about the human being in the organization – not as a “resource”, but as a response. A response to challenges that cannot be solved with instructions. A response to situations where no right decision exists. A response to a world in which moral clarity, courage, and trust have become strategic competencies. Fully understanding this is the only path to survival – not only for companies, but for Ukraine itself, in times when familiar rules no longer apply.

From Risk to Responsibility: A Diagnosis of Reality

“We all watch the news. Some people are buying bunkers; others are crossing their professions off the list of relevant ones. Uncertainty has become not just a feature of our time, but its very essence”,

the speaker outlined the reality we live in.

The COVID-19 pandemic, full-scale war, moral exhaustion, rapid AI development, and declining trust in institutions – all of this forms the emotional backdrop of today’s management. According to Andrew Rozhdestvensky, HR professionals can no longer think solely in terms of efficiency and optimization, because what’s at stake is something deeper: the ability of people to preserve dignity and meaning in their work.

We live in a world where:

• “Burnout” has become widespread (up to 80% of employees are at risk);
• Trust in companies is declining (only 55% of employees trust their employers);
• Adaptability is a core survival skill;
• AI, political turbulence, and economic wars form a constant backdrop.

This leads to a key question: what can counteract such destruction? The Center for Leadership of UCU offers a clear answer: culture. A culture of trust. A culture of Leadership. A culture as the intangible infrastructure of the future.

“Your database can be stolen. Your product design can be copied. But not your culture”,

our colleague explained.

Organizational culture, he said, is the most powerful – though often invisible – strategic advantage. It cannot be modeled or outsourced, because it is embodied in daily behavior, in choices, in the smallest details.

Culture is the pathway through which organizations can respond to complex challenges, build resilience, maintain innovation, and – above all – restore meaning. Culture formed by leaders begins to shape future generations of leaders. That’s why investing in Leadership means investing not in individuals, but in the environment.

Adaptive Leadership: Acting Without Instructions

“What if tomorrow people from NASA come to your agro-company and say: “We’re going to Mars [and we need seedlings that can survive in a new environment]. Will you join us?” What will you say? There’s no manual. Only your Character. [And your readiness to face a challenge no one has faced before]”,

said Andrew Rozhdestvensky, guiding his audience into the topic of Adaptive Leadership.

This is Leadership not in stable environments, but in the unknown. It doesn’t rely on ready-made solutions, but on the ability to hold space, trust others, and be a pillar when everything is shaking. This leadership model requires inner maturity and moral courage, because you can’t always rely on formal authority or experience.

The Leader’s Character as an Ethical Asset of the Organization

“If your employee is very smart, very energetic, but not ethical – it’s a disaster”,

he paraphrased Warren Buffett’s well-known quote, emphasizing the importance of Character.

According to research by the Center for Leadership of UCU, the level of a Leader’s Virtues (based on the Model of the Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership at Ivey Business School, which the Center uses) directly influences the ethical behavior of subordinates. Even in remote settings, where daily supervision fades, the Leadership Character and trust in the team become safeguards against cynicism and manipulation.

Venture Mindset: Thinking in Risk, Not in Procedure

“Your “ideal” employee today often has to think like a startup founder or a venture investor. And you, as a leader, must be interesting enough that they still want to stay with you”,

continued the Executive Director of the Center for Leadership of UCU, shifting to the theme of the “venture” mindset.

In a world that changes too quickly, companies must foster not only stability, but also the ability to experiment. This means building environments where employees are not afraid to try, not afraid to fail, and not afraid to think big.

HR as Architect of Culture and Meaning

“I asked: what challenges are you facing? Then: who do you have to respond to them? And only after that: which development model to implement”,

the speaker shared the logic behind his work with organizations.

This is not an abstraction. It’s a step-by-step method:

1. Identify strategic challenges.
2. Understand which virtues and abilities are needed to respond.
3. Build a model of leadership competencies tailored to these challenges.
4. Test it with real people.
5. Cultivate a culture that allows these competencies to grow.

In this process, HR is not just supporting. HR is a co-creator. A co-author of meaning. A co-architect of culture. And when work is no longer perceived as a process, but becomes a space of shared responsibility – that is when an organization finds its way to overcoming today’s challenges.

“We can’t change the presidents of other countries. But we can ask ourselves: “Today, did I act like a leader? Or like a blogger, merely gathering loyal and functional followers?” [And the answer to that question is the clearest reflection of whether we’re ready to embrace the new reality – a reality that is already here]”,

Andrew Rozhdestvensky concluded.

Instead of an Epilogue

Ultimately, this talk was not about a method – it was about a stance. Where Leadership is not a function, but a choice. A strategic responsibility for what tomorrow will look like. And HR today is not about “personnel”, but about a culture capable of holding the human being – and creating a space in which the future becomes possible.And if something our colleague said resonated with you, and you want to explore how to bring such practices into your organization – write to us. Let’s shape the new face of Ukrainian business, public service, civic initiatives, and the Defense Forces – together.