Leading Complexity – Year 4: Navigating the Age of AI (and Everything Else)

Three years ago, we launched the Leading Complexity Program with a simple but urgent question:

How do we lead when the world is changing at an exponential pace?

Organizations everywhere were feeling the pressure of complexity—messy systems, rapid change, and no playbook for how to lead when everything’s connected, changing fast, and increasingly unpredictable. As long-time coaches and consultants at Crisp, we’d seen firsthand how traditional leadership models were breaking down—and we were inspired to create a space to learn, together, how to do better.

Why We Started This Program

The idea was never to deliver answers, but to bring people together around the most important questions. We wanted to create something that mixed inspiration with practical insights—where participants could hear directly from the thinkers we ourselves turn to for perspective, challenge, and new thinking.

So we started curating a lineup of global thought leaders—people working on the edges of leadership, complexity science, systems thinking, and organizational design. We built on the fantastic network of “stars” that have visited Crisp during the years and added some new connections.

Some of the previous speakers

We called it the Leading Complexity Program, and it turned out we weren’t alone in this curiosity. Over the past three years, hundreds of leaders, coaches, and change agents have joined, and the learning community continues to grow.

What’s New in 2025?

Leading in the Age of AI and Accelerating Complexity

This year marks the fourth season, and the theme has never felt more relevant.

In 2025, we’re focusing on how to lead, learn, and adapt in the age of AI and accelerating complexity.

AI isn’t just a technology shift—it’s a leadership shift. As boundaries between humans and machines blur, fast decisions and deeper sense-making collide. We need to evolve our approach to collaboration, learning, organizational structure, and what it means to be adaptive. That’s what this year’s sessions are all about.

From networked, agentic organizations to human–AI teaming, from decision-making in uncertainty to curiosity-driven leadership, the master classes this year are packed with relevant, thought-provoking, and immediately applicable insights.

Who’s Speaking This Year?

We’re thrilled to welcome 10 world-class thinkers and practitioners, including:

  • Susan Basterfield on curiosity, complexity, and AI in leadership
  • Jeff Sutherland on scaling agility with AI
  • Portia Tung on emotional resilience in turbulent times
  • Jurgen Appelo on networked, agentic organizations
  • Nils Janse on AI Agents: Leading the Transformation from Gen AI Tools to Human-AI Teams
  • …and many more. Full speaker lineup here »

What You Get When You Join

Ten live, interactive sessions via Zoom

Access to all session recordings, including (almost all) previous years’ sessions

Invitation to our Slack community for ongoing discussions

• A chance to learn with and from other curious leaders across industries

Want to Join Us?

The program starts in October 2025 and runs for ten weeks.

We hope to see you there!