Leadership in turbulent times: what it takes

Drawing on 42 years in public service, from social worker to chief executive, Kath O’Dwyer offers nine essential leadership tips. The article focuses on navigating the “turbulence” of local government by cultivating adaptive resilience, leading with empathy, trusting your team, and building a strong professional network.

After 42 years in public service – starting as a social worker and moving through senior roles to become a Chief Executive in two quite challenged places – I’ve seen people, organisations, and communities at their lowest points, but also at their very best. And if that isn’t a perfect metaphor for local government, I don’t know what is.

Every day, we stand beside people in crisis and in triumph. Leadership is about navigating both – with empathy, clarity, and resilience. So, although I don’t claim to have a magic formula for leadership, I do have a few tips that might help make the journey a little smoother.

Turbulence is not the exception – It’s the norm

For those in senior roles, turbulence is not an occasional storm – it’s the frequent weather forecast. Political shifts, policy churn, financial pressures, staff shortages, community tensions, climate emergencies and so on. These are often all happening at once, and often with very little warning.

So the first mindset shift is this: leading through uncertainty is not a blip or a temporary phase – it is part of the job. And because of that, our job is not simply to survive turbulence, but to navigate it, manage it, see the opportunities within it and provide stability through it.

Frame the problem(s) deeply and honestly

Before rushing to solutions, we must truly understand the issues at hand. Too often, leaders feel the pressure to “fix” things immediately. But for the fix to be the right one, clarity must come first. Know the problem well enough that you can explain it simply to anyone – frontline staff, portfolio holders, partners, residents. Because if you cannot articulate the problem clearly, how can you convince others of the need for the proposed solution, or the direction of travel?

And then it is about defining success – not necessarily as “the problem fixed,” but as a vision of what things will look like, and feel like, when we’ve arrived where we need to be. People don’t follow tasks. They follow purpose.

Know your route map – but be adaptable

Project management is not about Gantt charts, although those have their place. The real work is communication. Keeping people informed. Sharing the journey, the setbacks, the changes in direction. Have a plan, yes. But hold it lightly. If new information emerges – adjust; if circumstances change – adapt; if staff tell you something isn’t working – listen to them and hear them.

No strategy survives first contact with reality unchanged. But don’t zigzag so often that people lose confidence in the plan. Consistency in values and purpose must remain the anchor.

Trust your team

Councils deliver more than 800 services. No chief executive or senior leader knows every detail of all of the services they are responsible for, and nor should they. The role of a leader is not to be the smartest person in the room. It is to build a team that possesses the knowledge, skills, and experience, or indeed the curiosity to find the answers needed.

Trust your people. Let them get on with the work they know best; don’t micromanage, because micromanagement suffocates initiative. Instead, be present and offer perspective, remove barriers, and be curious. Ensure the right checks and balances are in place, and ask the right questions.

Engaging with your resisters – Not just your supporters

This is often the hardest bit. Every organisation has resisters, people who challenge, question, or even outright oppose your direction. But critics outside the tent are far more dangerous than critics inside it. Bring them in. Understand their fears. Find the shared purpose.

Sometimes your most vocal opponents can become your strongest champions, once they see you’ve listened and respected their perspective. And they will likely be well-positioned and able to influence the wider resistance group as well.

Keep it human

We know that people will not always agree with you, and they will sometimes resist you, meaning that some days you’ll feel tested to the limit. But remember this: their frustration is rarely about you personally.

More often than not, they are reacting to uncertainty, loss, and change, as well as to their perceived threats to their identity, security, or sense of place and the familiar. So hold your values steady; lead with empathy; be authentic in your approach, and remind yourself why you stepped into leadership in the first place: we all came into this work to make a difference.

Draw on your networks

We know that being a senior leader in local government can be a lonely path, and more than ever, the last few years have reminded us that leadership is not a solo act. Whether during the pandemic, extreme weather events, riots, or periods of community unrest, local government is always at the frontline. Yes, we respond to the incident, but we also heal and hold communities long after the headlines move on. Restoring cohesion, rebuilding trust, healing trauma… that takes time, compassion, and collaboration.

And this is where our sector shines, when we come together – across councils, with our partners, and with our communities – we are so much stronger. There is also the really tough stuff that happens within our organisations – the cyber attack, the difficult relationships, the differences of opinions and views with our politicians, the tricky HR issues, and this is when we can feel the most alone and isolated.

Sector focused events, roundtables, conferences, regional networks, and even informal peer conversations matter even more in tough times, because in those moments when we feel stretched so thin, isolated, or stuck, someone else in this sector has either been there before or is in a similar situation to you and can support, guide and help us to see a way through.

Build your personal and professional resilience

As leaders, we push through enormous pressure. But resilience isn’t about being unbreakable. It’s about having the right people around you, taking time to look up and reflect, knowing when to step back, and remembering that you are more than your job.

My best advice is to identify a mentor or coach, a sounding board who will tell you the truth, not just what you want to hear. It’s never been more important to create space for reflection.

It’s also important to consciously look after your wellbeing – have a proper work-free weekend, take regular breaks, do things that remind you why you are here, plan and have things to look forward to, make the time and space to do things you enjoy, and that refresh you.

Leadership is demanding, exhausting, challenging and is emotionally heavy work. We cannot serve our communities if we are running on empty, so make the space and take the time to look after yourself.

Modelling this to your workforce will also help make your wider team and organisation more resilient.

And my final tip is about our readiness and willingness to…

Face the future

As we look ahead, it’s clear that turbulence isn’t going away – if anything, it’s increasing.

The challenges you are facing today will likely become even more complex: we know that there will be continued financial strain, rapid technological shifts including AI, political volatility, rising expectations from our communities, and climate shocks that affect whole regions.

While we of course need to plan as best we can, the future of leadership won’t be about predicting every twist and turn; it will be about cultivating organisations that can thrive amid uncertainty.

That means building cultures where people are empowered to innovate, where difficult conversations are normalised, where we harness data and technology without losing the human touch, and where collaboration, not competition, is the instinctive response.

Turbulent leadership in the future will demand not just resilience, but adaptive resilience, the ability to learn, adjust, and strengthen through challenge. Our task is not simply to endure the turbulence ahead, but to prepare our people and places to navigate it with confidence and collective purpose.

So, in conclusion, it’s often said, but it is true – we really are working in unprecedented times. But we are also part of a sector filled with extraordinary talent, courage, and commitment, and a sector that has a proven track record of responding effectively, navigating the toughest of times, and dealing with challenges and uncertainty.

As leaders, our job isn’t to eliminate turbulence – it is to help our teams and communities navigate it with confidence and hope.