Julia, it feels like we’re constantly playing defense these days. Whether it’s weird weather, rising prices or unpredictable customer habits, the goalposts keep moving. I want to be a better leader in all this uncertainty, but I’m not sure how to plan when nothing feels stable. What should I be doing to assess risk and make smarter calls?
You’re not imagining it—this is a leadership era shaped by instability. Today’s business conditions change fast: inflation one quarter, supply shortages the next. One week you’re navigating heat waves, the next your top-selling product is suddenly out of stock due to regulatory shifts or transportation delays. It’s exhausting, and more than that, it’s risky—especially if you’re not looking ahead.
But here’s the good news: you don’t have to control the chaos. You just need to lead well through it. And that starts with how you think about risk. At Leading NOW, we talk a lot about the difference between risk and crisis. Risk is something you can usually spot—or at least scan for. A crisis is what happens when you don’t. Your goal is to stay on the risk side of that equation as long as you can.
That means shifting your radar outward. Many leaders are great at watching internal numbers—labor hours, shrink, customer complaints. But real risk often lives outside your walls. What’s happening in your city council meetings? What are the local weather forecasts showing for next month? Are customers cutting back on gas station snacks—or leaning into new buying behaviors like plant-based, tech-enabled, or private label? Risk-aware leaders are looking for these patterns and asking: what could that mean for us?
You don’t need a spreadsheet to run a risk assessment. Just a little “what if” thinking goes a long way. If the supply chain slows, how would you keep key products in stock? If customer habits shift, how could you pivot without losing loyalty? If policy changes affect payment programs or product sales, how will you respond? Asking these questions before you have to answer them is how you lead proactively—not reactively.
Another tool we use at Leading NOW is a simple scorecard, adapted from the University of Minnesota’s Enterprise Risk Management framework, that asks you to scan across five areas: strategic, operational, reputational, regulatory and financial. While keeping these distinct areas in mind, ask yourself: Where are we most vulnerable right now? What’s quietly changing that we haven’t named yet? What would catch us off guard? That kind of risk leadership doesn’t require a title—it requires being attentive and leveraging your unique view in the organization.
Just as important is how you support your team. Risk isn’t only about supply chains and revenues, sometimes it’s morale, burnout or misinformation that throws a wrench in the works. Stay connected to your people. Transparently share what you know, what you don’t know and what you’re watching. This builds trust and serves to keep the energy steady even when the environment isn’t.
Bottom line? You don’t need to predict the future—you just need to prepare for it. Stay curious. Stay flexible. And remember: in times like these, being steady is a competitive advantage.
To Submit a Question
If you have a question for Julia, simply submit your question to julia.lazzara@leadingnow.biz. While we can’t promise she will be able to answer all of the questions she receives, our goal is to provide you with the insights and advice you need to have a successful career.
Julia Lazzara is the president of Leading NOW, an organization shaping the future of workplace dynamics by advocating women’s advancement and engaging male allies to bring gender balance to leadership. Leading NOW is a founding partner and educational content provider for CSP’s C-Store Women’s Event (CSW). Reach her at julia.lazzara@leadingnow.biz.
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