How to Build Organizational Agility into Your Company DNA

“It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” – Leon Megginson

66 million years ago, in the Cretaceous Age, a meteor struck the Earth, and 75% of all life vanished. In the aftermath, it was not the fiercest, but the most adaptable species that endured and evolved. The dinosaurs that had resilience built into their DNA were best able to pivot to meet the moment. The lesson? Strength and size mean nothing without agility.

We may not exactly be facing extinction in our current business landscape, but sometimes it sure feels that way. The meteors keep coming: game-changing technologies, economic shocks, war, pandemic, shifting markets – and yes – even climate change. 

In every case, agility still means the difference between thriving and disappearing.

Of course, true organizational agility doesn’t just mean reacting to chaos. It’s also about seizing the moment. Sometimes that means incremental evolution – shifting culture and embedding adaptability and resilience into your company’s DNA. That is what provides a competitive advantage, and allows organizations to pivot, grab new opportunities, and lead through disruption.

This has been a frequent conversion at Workhuman Live since our start ten years ago. Thought leaders like Simon Sinek and Cassandra Worthy have often shared thoughts from our stage on how agility fuels innovation, builds resilience, and redefines leadership. 

We thought we’d share a few of the learnings we’ve picked up from speakers and partners over the years – about how to make agility the foundation of your organization’s success and embed it into your company’s DNA. 

Whether you’re an HR leader, a CEO, or a team manager, these insights will help you not only survive but thrive in an evolving world.

Defining organizational agility 

“Agility is the ability of an organization to renew itself, adapt, change quickly, and succeed in a rapidly changing, ambiguous, turbulent environment. Agility is not incompatible with stability – quite the contrary. Agility requires stability for most companies.” – Aaron DeSmet, McKinsey & Company

So what is organizational agility? At its essence, it refers to the ability of a business to sense opportunities, respond to challenges, and adapt with speed and creativity. 

But agility means more than merely reacting; it’s about proactively driving change.

Core dimensions of an agile organization

1. Leadership agility: Visionary leaders who can inspire teams and guide them through uncertainty.
   
2. Structural flexibility: Organizational frameworks that promote collaboration and speed.
   
3. Cultural readiness: A mindset open to innovation and change.
   
4. Resilience: Systems that maintain performance under external pressures.

As Workhuman 2024 speaker Cassandra Worthy has explained: change isn’t necessarily always a threat – it’s also a powerful opportunity to innovate and grow. “What if every change was an opportunity to grow?” she has asked. The answer makes a big strategic difference.

With emerging technologies like generative AI, evolving employee expectations around wellbeing, and economic turbulence, the need for agility has never been more critical. Companies that embed agility into their operations and culture are better positioned to adapt to any changing market conditions.

Why organizational agility matters in 2025

“In a rapidly changing world, we need to spend as much time rethinking as we do thinking.” – Adam Grant, Speaker at Workhuman Live 2015, 2021 and 2025 

The business landscape of 2025 demands more than surface-level adaptability. Organizational agility has become synonymous with resilience, innovation, and long-term success. In fact, a systematic academic review of 249 case studies highlights a clear, consistent link between agility and enhanced performance across industries. 

But why is agility so impactful? It helps you to:

Navigate uncertainty with confidence

In a time defined by volatility, agility is the ability to act decisively amid disruptions. Agile organizations don’t just react to change – they anticipate it. Whether it’s responding to geopolitical upheavals or technological breakthroughs, they can pivot rapidly, staying focused on long-term goals without sacrificing short-term adaptability.

Keep up with technology

Generative AI, automation, and other advancements are reshaping industries overnight. To remain competitive, organizations must integrate these tools effectively into their products and services, boosting operational efficiency while maintaining a human-centered approach. Agility ensures that organizations can quickly adopt emerging technologies, turning them into strategic advantages.

Meet customer demands

Customer expectations have never been higher. Consumers demand faster, more personalized experiences and constant innovation. Agile organizations thrive in this changing market, tailoring their business processes to meet customer demands with speed and precision, fostering lasting loyalty.

Foster innovation and creativity

Agility responds to change, but it also drives it. By cultivating a culture of curiosity and adaptability, companies empower teams to explore new opportunities, experiment with ideas, and reimagine their offerings. Agile organizations don’t only keep pace – they set it.

Enhance employee engagement and retention

A truly agile organization is as attentive to its people as it is to external market forces. By fostering a responsive workplace, leaders reduce workplace fatigue and improve employee engagement. Employees who trust their organization’s ability to adapt feel more secure, inspired, and loyal, contributing to overall productivity and innovation.

Build long-term resilience

Agility is the foundation of resilience. When crises like the COVID-19 pandemic hit, organizations with agility embedded in their DNA maintained business outcomes, embraced hybrid work models, and innovated in real time. These companies survive crises – and they emerge stronger, with renewed momentum.

Gain a competitive edge

We all operate in a complex and crowded business environment, and agility is the ultimate competitive advantage. Agile companies are just better at seizing opportunities faster, adjusting their business strategy dynamically, and dominating their industries by staying ahead of market trends.

Support sustainability and social responsibility

Agility also aligns with the rising emphasis on sustainability and inclusivity. By integrating new strategies that reflect societal priorities, organizations demonstrate their relevance while building trust among stakeholders. Agile practices ensure businesses are adaptable enough to drive lasting, meaningful impact.

Tangible benefits of organizational agility

Agility doesn’t just shape how businesses respond to change – it also redefines the outcomes they achieve. The measurable benefits of organizational agility offer a compelling case for embedding it into every aspect of operations.

Linking agility to business outcomes

Organizational agility significantly enhances business performance across various metrics. Key benefits include:

• Financial performance: McKinsey research shows In the 2020–21 economic recovery, resilient companies generated a total shareholder return 50% higher than their less resilient peers
• Employee wellbeing: Academic studies show that agile teams experience higher wellbeing scores, indicating a positive impact on employee satisfaction and mental health.
• Adaptability: Agile organizations demonstrate improved adaptability in adopting hybrid work models, integrating emerging technologies, and implementing sustainable practices, enabling them to respond effectively to market changes.

These findings underscore the tangible advantages of embedding agility into organizational operations, leading to enhanced resilience, innovation, and overall performance.

5 ways an agile team can deliver value

These numbers all demonstrate the incredible power of agility to enhance resilience, unlock innovation, and create workplaces where people and performance thrive.  Here are a few metrics you can expect to be boosted with agility:

• Resilience: Agile organizations can maintain productivity and respond to change effectively, even during crises. Their ability to adjust quickly without derailing long-term goals ensures continuity and stability.
• Innovation: By fostering experimentation, agility enables teams to deliver iterative improvements through agile methods like Kanban or SCRUM. This approach accelerates value creation and boosts customer satisfaction.
• Employee engagement: Teams in agile organizations report higher trust, collaboration, and motivation. This engagement translates to increased productivity and greater organizational commitment.
• Customer satisfaction: Agile companies prioritize adaptability in their business processes, ensuring they meet evolving customer expectations and maintain a competitive edge.
• ESG: Agility allows businesses to integrate sustainability goals without sacrificing performance, creating positive impacts for both the planet and profitability.

For organizations today, the stakes couldn’t be clearer: those who invest in agility are better positioned to navigate challenges, embrace opportunities, and meet the demands of an evolving workforce and marketplace.

By embedding agility into your organizational DNA, you can achieve more than resilience – you can lead with innovation and purpose in an unpredictable world.

How to become more agile

So how can you move the needle? Creating an agile organization goes beyond quick fixes. It means aligning your underlying organizational structure, leadership, and culture to adapt.

Foster a culture of awareness and adaptability

Agility always starts with mindset. Leaders must cultivate curiosity and foster a safe space for experimentation and even failure. As Workhuman Live 2025 speaker Dr. Tasha Eurich has highlighted, self-awareness is critical for leaders as a tool for understanding their own strengths and blind spots. The more power a leader holds, she noted in Harvard Business Review, the more likely they are to overestimate their skills and abilities. 

“Though most people believe they are self-aware, only 10%-15% of the people we studied actually fit the criteria,” Eurich wrote. “Leaders who focus on building both internal and external self-awareness, who seek honest feedback from loving critics, and who ask what instead of why can learn to see themselves more clearly – and reap the many rewards that increased self-knowledge delivers.”

Likewise, leaders must be sure to encourage ongoing learning and ensure that team members feel empowered to innovate. Agile organizations thrive when employees can respond to change with creativity and confidence.

Prioritize employee wellbeing

Resilience is also built on a foundation of wellbeing. Invest in resources and programs that enhance employee wellness, as healthier teams drive operational efficiency and contribute to a responsive workplace. 

Dr. Kara Mohr, a wellbeing expert who will be speaking at Workhuman 2025, has emphasized this connection between wellbeing and agility in organizations. Tune in to her upcoming session with Jen Fisher, for insight into how to develop and implement innovative work design strategies that prioritize employee wellbeing and organizational effectiveness.

Be sure also to mark your agenda for the Workhuman 2025 panel that features Jen Fisher, among others, which will offer insights on how HR leaders have strategically integrated wellbeing into their teams’ daily routines, focusing on techniques to build resilience, cognitive agility and enhance productivity –  increasing workplace adaptability and empowering organizations to thrive in an evolving landscape.

Invest in inclusivity as a cornerstone of agility

Diversity drives innovation. Inclusive leaders encourage diverse perspectives and ensure decision-making reflects the needs of all stakeholders. 

Researchers have identified workforce diversity as a key factor in fostering organizational agility. A 2023 study highlighted that diverse teams enhance adaptability by bringing varied perspectives to decision-making processes, boosting innovation, and enabling organizations to respond effectively to market changes. The findings emphasize that diversity in age, gender, ethnicity, and educational background contributes to creating agile workforces that are better equipped to navigate challenges and seize opportunities in dynamic environments​.

Diversity will also be front at center at Workhuman 2025, including a session with Bridget McDermid, Neurodivergent Inclusivity Leader at TD, on creating inclusive experiences. This session will explore how proactive, inclusive-first design unlocks agility, fosters innovation, and creates workplaces where everyone can thrive.

Embedding agility into your organizational DNA

To create a truly agile organization, agility must be part of your DNA, shaping processes, leadership styles, and decision-making frameworks.

Lead by example

Agile leaders demonstrate adaptability and empathy, showing their teams how to embrace change rather than fear it. Brené Brown, a speaker at several of our past Workhuman Live conferences, has said, “Vulnerability in leadership is not a weakness; it’s a superpower.” Leaders who are willing to admit they don’t have all the answers foster trust and encourage innovation. 

Embrace flexible processes

Adopt agile frameworks to encourage iteration and accountability. Cross-functional collaboration ensures teams can pivot in response to customer demands or shifts in the business landscape. 

Leverage technology strategically

Agile organizations use technology to enhance human creativity and connection. As flagship Workhuman Live keynote speaker Arianna Huffington once noted, “Technology, no matter how advanced, should always serve humanity, not the other way around.” Tools like analytics platforms and recognition systems enable teams to respond quickly to market changes.

Measure organizational agility: How to know if you’re agile enough

To become more agile, organizations must start by understanding how to measure organizational agility effectively. While agility might seem intangible, there are specific metrics and indicators that can help you evaluate progress and identify opportunities for improvement.  

At its core, defining organizational agility means assessing the organization’s ability to respond to change, innovate, and deliver value consistently. This involves looking at areas like leadership, team dynamics, processes, and outcomes. The most successful organizations use structured methodologies, such as Kanban or OKRs, to embed agility into their workflows and create clear benchmarks.

Agile transformation metrics to consider include:

• Time to Market: How quickly can your organization adapt to market demands or launch a new product?
  
• Employee Engagement and Feedback: How engaged is your agile team? Are they empowered to make decisions and pivot when necessary?
  
• Customer Satisfaction: Is your organization meeting evolving customer expectations and maintaining loyalty?
  
• Operational Efficiency: How effectively are resources being used to deliver value while minimizing waste?

These metrics create a snapshot of what makes an organization agile and serve as a foundation for continuous improvement.

Organizational agility examples

Looking for a few stories about how agility can impact businesses, helping them to adapt to changing environments, and fostering innovation and resilience. 

Here are eight notable examples of business agility:

• Ford’s agile transformation: Under CEO Alan Mulally, Ford restructured its operations to foster collaboration and responsiveness, leading to a significant turnaround in the automotive industry.
• Netflix’s evolution: Transitioning from a DVD rental service to a leading streaming platform, Netflix exemplifies agility by continuously adapting its business model to technological advancements and consumer preferences.
• Microsoft’s cloud shift: Under CEO Satya Nadella, Microsoft embraced cloud computing, transforming its product offerings and business strategy to remain competitive in the tech industry.
• Spotify’s data-driven approach: Utilizing user data to personalize experiences and inform strategic decisions, Spotify demonstrates agility in responding to user needs and market trends.
• Zara’s fast fashion model: By implementing a responsive supply chain, Zara rapidly brings new designs to market, aligning closely with current fashion trends and consumer demands.
• Tesla’s innovation in automotive: Tesla’s focus on electric vehicles and continuous innovation in autonomous driving technologies highlight its agile approach in the automotive sector.
• IBM’s business model transformation: IBM shifted from hardware manufacturing to focus on cloud computing and AI services, demonstrating agility in redefining its core business.
• Airbnb’s adaptation during COVID-19: Faced with a global travel decline, Airbnb pivoted to offer online experiences and long-term stays, showcasing its ability to adapt to unprecedented challenges.

The role of HR in driving organizational agility

HR leaders are at the forefront of fostering agility within organizations. As the ‘heartbeat’ of organizational culture, HR leaders play a critical role in aligning leadership strategies, building resilient teams, and driving continuous learning and inclusion initiatives.

Empowering future leaders

HR teams identify and develop visionary talent across the organization. As Deloitte has noted, organizations that invest in leadership development are better equipped to navigate ambiguity, complexity, and evolving market conditions. Deloitte urges organizations to “Empower team decision-making, rather than forcing top-down constraints.” Ensuring executives are clear on the objective, then fully trusting and empowering teams to deliver..

Driving cultural transformation

By building self-awareness, fostering inclusion, and encouraging cross-functional collaboration, HR leaders ensure agility becomes a foundational element of the workplace. This is especially important, as Gartner research has shown that employees have limited patience with change. Employees’ willingness to support change initiatives dropped to 43% in 2022, significantly down from 74% in 2016.

The path to deliver agility at scale

Agility is the ultimate differentiator in today’s volatile business environment. It fosters resilience, sparks innovation, and enables organizations to meet evolving customer expectations with confidence.

And along the way, you just might find that the very exercise of agility may be rewarding. As surprise expert Tania Luna observed way back at our first Workhuman Live in 2015, “We feel most comfortable when things are certain, but we feel most alive when they’re not.” It’s hard to underestimate the exhilaration and inspiration that can come from effectively meeting the moment. 

Will you adapt and evolve, or risk extinction like the dinosaurs of the past? Just as the dinosaurs’ survival hinged on resilience and adaptability in the face of the meteor’s impact, today’s businesses must embed agility into every layer of their operation to thrive in an ever-changing landscape.

Are you ready to learn more? Now is the time to take the next step in embedding agility into your organization. Connect with thought leaders shaping the evolution and future of work at Workhuman Live 2025 at the Gaylord Rockies in Colorado this May 12–15.

Click here to register for Workhuman Live 2025 and continue the conversation!

About Darcy Jacobsen

Darcy is a passionate storyteller and champion of workforce transformation, human connection, and recognition-driven culture. As an author on the Workhuman Live Blog, she loves to connect deep research insights with modern workplace dynamics to uncover what really drives engagement, belonging, and happiness at work. With a background in communications and a master’s in medieval history, she brings a unique perspective to her writing, taking deep dives into all topics around organizational psychology and the science of gratitude.