We don’t live in an either/or world. We live in a both/and world.
This truth applies to how we lead, how we innovate, and most importantly, how we make decisions. Agile leadership is essential today, but as I’ve said before, agility alone is not enough.
It’s time to thrive better in a world of constant disruption. Leaders of today must combine business agility with something even more powerful: Anticipatory decision-making.
Why Is Balancing Agility and Anticipation So Important?
Agility is simple. It means reacting quickly to change. It’s the ability to pivot when unexpected circumstances arise. Agile leadership has been the dominant model for the past two decades, especially in tech and innovation-driven sectors.
But here’s the catch: when you’re constantly reacting, you’re always one step behind.
Anticipation is the missing piece of the leadership puzzle. When you use my Anticipatory Organization® Model, you identify future certainties, which those I teach know are Hard Trends, and use them to drive strategy before disruption occurs.
But make no mistake: this is not a case of “choose one.” The most effective leaders today blend anticipation and agility seamlessly. This hybrid mindset allows you to make smarter decisions much faster while reducing risk and amplifying innovation.
What’s the Difference Between Being Agile and Being Anticipatory?
Let’s define the terms clearly:
- Agility is defined as reacting fast to unforeseen events.
- Anticipation is defined as acting fast because you saw the disruption coming.
Agility helps you survive. Anticipation helps you thrive.
But again, agility is still absolutely essential. Even the best Anticipatory Leaders must remain agile in many circumstances. This is because no one can predict every single variable. The future contains both certainties (Hard Trends) and uncertainties (Soft Trends). We always need to be prepared for encountering both.
How Do Anticipatory Leaders Make Better Decisions?
In leadership, we are forced to make hundreds of decisions. Some decisions are small, some are massive and of vital importance to the organization.
With so many variables at play, decision fatigue is real. But Anticipatory decision-making makes those decisions clearer, faster, and more accurate.
Hard Trends being based on demographics, regulation, or technology allows us to separate what will happen from what might happen.
From there, we can:
- Pre-solve problems before they occur
- Skip over false problems that waste time
- Identify hidden opportunities long before competitors
This strategic clarity frees up mental and organizational bandwidth. It allows us to be agile where it matters most, executing with precision once we’ve already identified the right path.
Who’s Getting This Strategy Right?
1. Microsoft: Anticipating the AI Wave While Remaining Agile
When Microsoft invested $1 billion in OpenAI in 2019, it was an Anticipatory move. They didn’t wait for generative AI to become mainstream. They saw the Hard Trend of AI acceleration and acted early. But their true brilliance came later: integrating AI tools like Copilot across Office365 and Azure platforms. That required agility at scale, adapting product roadmaps, UI/UX designs, and customer education strategies in real time.
Anticipation identified the opportunity, but agility helped bring it all to life.
2. Walmart: Merging Long-Term Vision With Operational Agility
Walmart recognized that e-commerce and automation weren’t Soft Trends. They were very clearly Hard Trends. Therefore, Walmart began heavily investing in automation, robotics, and hybrid fulfillment centers. During the pandemic, they were able to quickly scale their curbside pickup and delivery operations, which was a move made possible because they had already anticipated digital demand.
Today, they remain agile in how they respond to market shifts, while leaning on a long-term Anticipatory vision.
3. John Deere: Bringing Autonomy to the Farm With Foresight + Field Agility
Years before autonomy became a buzzword, John Deere recognized the Hard Trend of AI-driven precision agriculture and acted decisively. Their 2017 acquisition of Blue River Technology wasn’t reactive—it was anticipatory. That foresight enabled them to lead, not follow, when the time was right. Deere rolled out its autonomous 8R tractor, advanced targeted spraying with See & Spray, and leveraged JDLink to push over-the-air updates through the Operations Center—optimizing performance in real time as field and weather conditions evolved. Anticipation shaped the strategy; agility made it tangible—row by row.
How Can You Start Blending Agility and Anticipation in Your Organization?
This is a question everyone has on their minds. But the good news is you don’t need to overhaul your entire decision-making framework overnight.
I encourage you to start here:
- Identify the Hard Trends in your industry: What future certainties can you build on?
- Pre-solve predictable problems: Where are you likely to encounter roadblocks that you can address now?
- Use agility in execution: Once you’ve identified a direction, adapt rapidly and intelligently.
And always remember, you’re not choosing between planning ahead or reacting quickly. You’re doing both strategically and simultaneously.
Final Thought: The Most Successful Leaders Think Like Pilots
Successful Anticipatory Leaders are a lot like pilots. A pilot files a flight plan before takeoff, which in this case is much like anticipation. But simultaneously, they constantly monitor conditions and make in-flight adjustments, which represents agility.
Anticipatory Leaders do the same. They use future certainties to make proactive decisions, but they stay agile enough to adjust for real-time changes. This balance is what transforms disruption from a threat into a competitive advantage.
Ready to Lead With Greater Certainty in 2026?
If you want to lead with confidence instead of reacting with uncertainty, it starts by identifying the Hard Trends that will shape your industry.
My Top 25 Tech Trends Report for 2026 is your blueprint for doing exactly that.
Inside, you’ll discover the game-changing technologies you can count on—allowing you to pre-solve problems, identify bold opportunities, and align your team around future-ready strategy.
In a world where disruption is accelerating, this is how you stay ahead—not just agile.
Download now at www.25TechTrendsReport.com and start turning future certainty into your competitive advantage.
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