Breaking Free in Turbulent Times - The Intersection of Turbulence, Innovation and Leadership: Unleashing Creativity and Driving Positive Change | Leadership Articles

There is no doubt that we live in turbulent times and face daunting problems – from the environmental challenges of global warming to the cultural challenges of an increasingly diverse society. On the business front, we face a growing global marketplace and far-flung organisations that span time zones and country borders. Information overload and the sheer pace of change have reached new heights.

Are we doomed to be carried along for the ride? Or can we harness such turbulence and use it to fuel new innovative solutions? Through a combination of my own personal experiences and those of other business leaders I encounter each day, I would argue that turbulence can be a positive force if we stay open to the possibilities.

Last year, for example, I was named chairman of a new Global Leadership and Technology Exchange (GLTE) designed to promote technological innovations that can enhance both business performance and environmental responsibility. GLTE was founded by a group of organisations such as Wilh. Wilhelmsen, a maritime shipping company, along with Pacific Gas and Electric, and Det Norske Veritas, an international risk management foundation. The first meeting drew a broad, international delegation that ranged from BP, General Electric, Bayer and Deutsche Bank to Sunoco, IBM, Fortune and Bloomberg; Shell Oil has since joined.

A decade ago, such cross-collaboration would have been unheard of in the business world. But the economic and environmental turbulence we face today has been a positive force for change.