As businesses continue to adapt to change and uncertainty, leaders are grappling with challenges that demand both resilience and adaptability. Professional coaches can play critical roles in helping leaders tackle these complex problems that can affect not just their careers and organizations, but also the broader business landscape.
Below, 14 Forbes Coaches Council members explore some of the key issues they anticipate focusing on in client coaching engagements in 2025. Read on to learn why they believe facing these particular leadership challenges head on will be so important in the year ahead and how they plan to help their clients address and overcome them.
1. Targeted Networking
Targeted networking is increasingly essential as remote work grows and industries evolve. Leaders need to build strategic, high-impact relationships—rather than broad, shallow connections—focusing on innovation, enhancing adaptability and providing critical insights across sectors. This is vital for fostering sustainable growth, resilience and competitive advantage in a rapidly changing world. - Astika Gupta, The Product Seat
2. The Human Aspect Of Using AI
Artificial intelligence is a game changer, but we still haven’t figured out the human aspect of it. While AI holds the promise of doing more with less, the assumption is teams can apply it with intentionality, focus and care to alleviate errors and improve outcomes. Yet teams need strategic thinking time, iterative feedback and collaborative communication to do this effectively. - Woodrie Burich, The Integration Group
3. Understanding A Company’s Strategic Vision
There are many key issues facing leaders today, but one which has arisen a lot lately with some of my clients is having a clear understanding of the company’s strategic vision. Having this understanding can sometimes lead to making decisions that may look like a short-term “loss” but, in fact, ultimately further the company’s long-term goals—it’s not always easily understood! - Ash Varma, Varma & Associates
Forbes Coaches Council is an invitation-only community for leading business and career coaches. Do I qualify?
4. Self-Awareness
A vital issue leaders face today is a lack of self-awareness, which will be a focus in 2025. Without trust and candid feedback from team members, leaders can lose sight of their strengths and develop blind spots, impacting team dynamics and outcomes. Self-aware leaders build confidence and foster growth, making it essential for people-first leadership in today’s complex workplace. - Alex Draper, DX Learning Solutions
5. AI Transformation Anxiety
Leading through AI transformation anxiety will dominate 2025’s coaching landscape. While C-suites push AI adoption, middle managers fear obsolescence, creating a dangerous implementation bottleneck. The critical challenge isn’t technical upskilling—it’s helping leaders transform fear into opportunity and guide teams through this seismic shift. - Nirmal Chhabria
6. Modern Employee Expectations
A key issue leaders face is adapting to the demands of the modern workforce, particularly the need for transparency, flexibility and purpose-driven leadership. This will be a major focus in 2025 because employee expectations are evolving rapidly, and leaders who fail to inspire trust and align with these values risk losing top talent and falling behind in innovation and engagement. - Mick Hunt, Mick Unplugged
7. Talent Acquisition And Retention
The competition for talent has grown more fierce, prompting organizations to revise their hiring strategies to attract a workforce that values flexibility and work-life balance. Leaders must communicate a compelling vision that not only draws in top talent, but also cultivates a workplace culture that supports long-term engagement. - Jackie Simon, Jackie Simon Coaching
8. Not Getting Behind And Feeling Overwhelmed
A big challenge is not getting behind and feeling overwhelmed by the rapid speed at which things are happening in the world. Leaders must be proactive, plan for increasing consumer demand and disruptions, and ensure they have the right players on the team. That requires leaders to be laser-focused, prioritize their time, communicate effectively and create the kind of culture people don’t want to leave. - Jason Ballard, Soar Higher Coaching & Training
9. Shifting From A Profit- To A Purpose-Driven Mindset
I expect a major focus of my coaching engagements will be helping board leaders navigate from a profit-driven to a purpose-driven mindset. This is a critical topic because the innovation and talent of the business sector are too valuable to be focused on wealth generation alone. We need business leaders to step up to play on the bigger stage of purpose, particularly as our politicians struggle. - Dr. John Blakey, John Blakey Ltd
10. Learning To Delegate Problem-Solving
The problem is leaders thinking that they have problems to fix. Instead, pivot and focus on catalyzing the creativity that comes from engaging your teams’ inherent consciousness. When their spark is ignited, you can step back and allow the team to come up with new, fresh and innovative solutions to “problems.” This happens with such ease that you will feel as if there were never a problem at all. - Darla Beam, Darla Beam Leadership & Coaching
11. Constant Learning And Adaptability
A key issue leaders face today, and one that will remain a focus in 2025, is the need for constant learning and adaptability to stay ahead of technological advancements, particularly regarding integrating AI into strategic decision-making. This is critical, as the rapid pace of AI innovation demands leaders who can apply it effectively to drive growth and remain competitive. - Maryam Daryabegi, Innovation Bazar
12. Managing Teams Through Worker Shortages
The shortage of selectively skilled workers with limited experience challenges leaders to balance immediate needs with long-term growth. Coaching can help leaders prioritize effective delegation, mentor inexperienced talent and develop adaptive strategies to build teams capable of addressing complex, specialized demands while fostering resilience and growth. - Stephan Lendi, Newbury Media & Communications GmbH
13. Learning New Skills
Learning new skills is the most important competence leaders can develop in themselves and demonstrate through examples to inspire their followers. In today’s BANI (brittle, anxious, nonlinear and incomprehensible) world, where everything is ultra-fast and driven by AI, people need to quickly adjust to new circumstances and embrace this reality with acceptance. With fast learning and new skills, leaders can best equip others for the future. - Dominik Szot, MIA
14. Aligning AI-Driven Innovation With Human-Centric Values
A key issue leaders face today is aligning AI-driven innovation with human-centric values. By 2025, this challenge will intensify as AI becomes integral to decision-making. Leaders must balance efficiency with empathy, ensuring technology enhances—not replaces—human potential. This is critical as stakeholders demand ethical leadership that inspires trust and inclusion. - Dr. Adil Dalal, Pinnacle Process Solutions, Intl., LLC