For decades, leadership was built on a quiet assumption: that the world, while imperfect, was fundamentally stable. Markets cycled. Institutions endured. Rules evolved slowly enough for experience to accumulate and guide decisions with confidence. Leaders learned patterns, applied frameworks, and relied on what had worked before.

Much of my early career was built in that environment – where five-year plans were tangible, strategy decks held their relevance, and continuity was a reasonable expectation.

That assumption no longer holds.

Today’s leaders operate in an environment defined less by cycles and more by sustained disruption – geopolitical fractures, technological acceleration, demographic shifts, climate shocks, and a growing erosion of institutional trust.

Volatility is no longer an interruption. It is the baseline.

Across restructurings, reorganizations, and crises – including the Global Financial Crisis – I learned how quickly institutions that appear durable can become fragile.

In this environment, a difficult truth emerges: experience, once leadership’s greatest asset, can quietly become its greatest liability.

The Comfort of Familiarity

Most senior leaders are not short on data or advice. If anything, they are overwhelmed by it. They have accumulated decades of firsthand lessons.

The greater risk is false certainty – the instinct to solve today’s problems using models formed yesterday. Many leadership frameworks and governance models were designed for continuity. When disruption was episodic, experience functioned as a reliable map. But when disruption becomes persistent, maps age quickly.

What once provided clarity can become comfort. And comfort can dull judgment.

I have caught myself, more than once, assuming “we’ve seen this before” – only to realize the underlying dynamics had fundamentally changed.

From Maps to Compasses

The leaders who struggle most today are not those without experience, but those who treat experience as instruction rather than input.

There is an important distinction:

• Experience as memory anchors leaders to the past.
  • Experience as wisdom sharpens judgment in the present.

In stable systems, detailed maps are useful. In unstable terrain, leaders need a compass.

A compass does not tell you exactly where to step. It provides direction when visibility is poor. It requires interpretation, trade-offs, and decisions without the comfort of precedent.

Leadership is shifting – from execution grounded in certainty to judgment exercised under ambiguity.

The Real Leadership Currency: Judgment

Judgment is not instinct. It is not confidence. And it is certainly not speed alone.

Judgment is the ability to:

• Act without full information
  • Move with urgency without eroding trust
  • Hold conviction without ego
  • Adapt without abandoning values

It is forged through exposure to uncertainty – when outcomes are unclear and accountability is real.

I have seen confident decisions unravel within weeks when regulations shifted, politics changed, or market shocks rewrote their underlying assumptions. Experience did not prevent the surprise – but judgment determined how quickly we recalibrated.

Many leaders built their experience in systems that absorbed mistakes. Today, systems are thinner, faster, and less forgiving. Decisions ripple across borders and markets instantly.

Leadership becomes less about certainty and more about calibrated action under pressure.

Strengthening Judgment in Practice

Judgment does not improve by accident. It sharpens through deliberate effort.

Leaders can strengthen it by:

• Actively seeking diverse viewpoints – especially from younger colleagues, different geographies, or adjacent industries.
  • Separating signal from ego by asking: Am I relying too heavily on past success?
  • Building a pause into decisions – not hesitation, but calibration.
  • Running rigorous debriefs, including after successful outcomes: What did we assume? What surprised us? What would we adjust next time?

Some of the most valuable course corrections in my career came not from failures, but from dissecting decisions that “worked” – and recognizing how much luck or timing had contributed.

Adapting the Lens

I experienced this recalibration early in my time leading teams in Asia. In many Western environments, participation in meetings is equated with engagement. Leaders ask open questions. Hands go up. Debate signals commitment.

That model does not automatically translate across many Asian cultural contexts. Norms around hierarchy, respect, and group harmony shape how people contribute. Silence does not imply disengagement – but it can be misinterpreted that way.

Executives accustomed to Western norms may repeat questions, assuming hesitation reflects lack of preparation. I learned that if I wanted contribution, I needed to redesign the structure. Rather than posing broad questions to the room, I invited individuals to lead topics where they had expertise, share success stories, or frame discussion around achievements.

Participation increased – not because competence changed, but because the format did.

Operating across Thailand, China, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore reinforced a consistent lesson: leadership frameworks do not travel intact. They must be translated, not transplanted.

Experience had given me a template. The environment required adaptation.

Why Nostalgia Is Dangerous

One of the most underestimated risks in leadership today is nostalgia.

Across industries and geographies, leaders still say:

• “We’ve seen this before.”
  • “This is just another cycle.”

Sometimes they are right. Many times, they are not.

I have learned to treat that instinct – especially in myself – as a warning signal rather than reassurance.

Successful leaders recognize the need to consciously unlearn parts of their own success. Careers are built on repetition. Reputation is built on consistency. Letting go of proven approaches can feel like abandoning identity.

But leadership is not about preserving the past. It is about stewarding the future.

The Discipline of Unlearning

Unlearning is not forgetting. It is consciously retiring assumptions.

Leaders can begin by:

• Identifying one “rule” that shaped their early success and testing whether it still holds under current conditions.
  • Expanding exposure across functions, geographies, and generations to broaden perspective.
  • Encouraging dissent early, so disagreement surfaces before disruption forces it.

Unlearning becomes less emotional when it becomes systematic.

Leading Without False Confidence

In uncertain times, there is a temptation to project certainty before it exists. Yet people increasingly detect performative confidence. What they respond to instead is credible calm -leaders who acknowledge uncertainty without being paralyzed by it.

The most trusted leaders consistently:

1. Clearly identify what is unknown
2. Explain how decisions will be made despite uncertainty
3. Anchor action in values rather than predictions

Trust today is built not on omniscience, but on honesty, coherence, and follow-through.

Across multiple markets in Asia, I have reorganized teams in response to shifting strategy and external volatility. Even when strategically sound, such changes create anxiety.

Earlier in my career, I might have presented those changes with more certainty than the environment warranted. Over time, I learned that false certainty erodes trust.

Instead, I outlined clearly what we knew, what we did not yet know, and the assumptions guiding our decisions. I explained why change was necessary and how it aligned with market realities. Most importantly, I made one principle explicit: if our assumptions proved wrong, we would adjust.

The message was no longer “trust the plan.” It became “trust the process.”

Credibility comes not from projecting certainty, but from demonstrating judgment – and the willingness to recalibrate.

Experience, Upgraded

None of this diminishes the value of experience. It reframes it.

Experience still matters – deeply – but only when it evolves with the environment. The most effective leaders treat experience as a reference library, not a rulebook.

They ask:

• Which parts of my experience still apply?
  • Which assumptions no longer hold?
  • What must be relearned?

Every generation of leaders faces a defining shift. For today’s leaders, it is moving from certainty to judgment – from maps to compasses – from authority rooted in answers to authority earned through clarity under pressure.

The future will not reward those who wait for stability. It will reward those who can lead responsibly while instability persists.

Before your next major decision, pause and ask:

• Is my confidence grounded in current reality – or inherited from past success?
  • Where might I be over-indexing on familiarity?
  • What belief would I be willing to abandon if the evidence required it?

In an environment where precedent is unreliable, the ultimate competitive advantage is not experience alone.

It is the courage to examine it – and upgrade yourself before the world forces you to.

Aseem Goyal

Global Financial Services Executive & Advisor

Author of the forthcoming Bridging Borders: Leadership, Crises, and Reinvention from 35 Years in Eight Global Markets

Most impactful quotes:

1. Volatility is no longer an interruption. It is the baseline.
2. Experience becomes a liability when it is treated as instruction rather than input.
3. In unstable terrain, leaders need a compass.
4. The message was no longer “trust the plan.” It became “trust the process.”
5. The ultimate competitive advantage is not experience alone – it is the courage to examine it.
6. Leadership today demands the courage to upgrade yourself before the world forces you to.

Clean Max Enviro Energy has launched its Rs 3,100 crore IPO for subscription on Monday, with the grey market premium indicating a marginal 0.3% upside over the upper end of the price band, suggesting limited listing gains. The issue, priced at Rs 1,000-1,053 per share, comprises a fresh issue of Rs 1,200 crore and an offer for sale of Rs 1,900 crore.

The IPO will close on February 25 and is scheduled to list on March 2. At the upper price band, the company is valued at a pre-IPO market capitalisation of Rs 12,325 crore.

CleanMax, incorporated in 2010, is India’s largest commercial and industrial renewable energy provider, with 2.80 GW of operational, owned and managed capacity and 3.17 GW of contracted capacity under execution as of October 2025. The company operates across solar, wind and hybrid solutions and focuses on long-term power purchase agreements with commercial and industrial customers.

Financially, the company has shown a turnaround. Revenue rose to Rs 1,610 crore in FY25 from Rs 1,425 crore in FY24, while net profit stood at Rs 19.43 crore in FY25 compared with a loss in the previous year. EBITDA margins improved to 63.1% in FY25 from 52% in FY24.

However, leverage remains elevated. Net debt stood at Rs 5,938 crore in FY25 and net debt-to-equity at 1.9 times. A large portion of the IPO proceeds will be used to repay borrowings, which could strengthen the balance sheet.

At the upper price band, the issue is valued at around 16 times EV/EBITDA, which analysts described as expensive, though there is strong growth visibility from rising renewable penetration and demand from data centres and AI-linked industries.

Should you subscribe?

Swastika Investmart assigned a “Neutral” rating and said the issue appears aggressively valued on recent financials, though superior EBITDA margins and operating metrics justify the pricing to some extent. It added that the IPO may be avoided for short-term or listing gains but can be considered by well-informed investors for the medium to long termAditya Birla Money has recommended Subscribe for long-term, citing under-penetration in C&I renewable energy, projected capacity additions and strong capital efficiency. It expects demand visibility to improve as renewable penetration rises and sectors such as data centres require round-the-clock green power.

With grey market premium at just 0.3%, the issue does not indicate strong short-term listing excitement. Investors looking for quick gains may remain cautious, while those with a longer investment horizon and comfort with capital-intensive renewable businesses may evaluate the company’s growth prospects and debt reduction plans before taking a call.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

Renewed volatility around global trade policy is forcing investors to reassess their strategies as tariff levels settle near 15% but policy signals remain fluid. Speaking to ET Now, market strategist Manishi Raychaudhuri said the sheer volume of conflicting headlines has made it difficult to draw firm conclusions, noting that what once appeared to be a settled tariff environment has “come back with a bang,” and that India’s earlier advantage over ASEAN peers has largely disappeared, creating “chaos and uncertainty” in the near term.

Against this backdrop, Raychaudhuri emphasized focusing on domestic growth opportunities rather than export-oriented sectors. He said he would avoid jumping into exporters and instead look for areas where growth aligns with reasonable valuations, highlighting basic materials, select industrials, and consumer discretionary segments as pockets of opportunity — while stressing the need to remain selective. Stocks such as Tata Steel, Hindustan Zinc, and Larsen & Toubro reflect the domestic cyclical themes he prefers.

He flagged consumer staples and IT services as areas of caution, arguing that staples suffer from low growth despite elevated valuations and that IT faces pricing pressure as artificial intelligence changes how clients evaluate contracts, potentially compressing margins. According to him, IT stocks may only become attractive at valuations closer to 10–12 times earnings, implying either downside or a prolonged period of sideways performance.

While acknowledging that some technology firms could stand out, he said companies demonstrating a clear ability to reinvent themselves — including through partnerships such as Infosys’ collaboration with AI players — may become more interesting over time, though he would wait for clearer evidence in growth or margin trends before allocating capital.

On foreign flows, Raychaudhuri noted that global investors currently have compelling alternatives across Asia where earnings growth is stronger and valuations are lower, suggesting that until this gap narrows, it may be difficult for India to see a sustained return of foreign institutional buying.

London suffered the steepest monthly decline, followed by the East Midlands and North West

The UK’s employment market suffered another blow as total job openings dropped to the lowest level since 2021, with London experiencing the most significant decline in available roles.

Job advertisements plunged 16 per cent year-on-year to January, falling below 700,000 for the first time since January 2021, according to job search platform Adzuna.

Labour’s employment rights act has been criticised in recent weeks for imposing additional hiring costs on British businesses, and chief financial officers at retail companies indicated they may be compelled to lay off staff as the reforms are rolled out.

The decrease in recruitment meant that 694,940 total roles were being advertised in January, as per Adzuna, marking a three per cent drop from December.

However, advertised salaries grew faster than inflation, rising six per cent from January 2025 to an average of £43,289, as reported by City AM.

London was the UK region to endure the quickest monthly drop in recruitment, with vacancies down 5.6 per cent.

The capital was closely followed by the East Midlands and North West England, where job opportunities were four per cent lower than in December.

Andrew Hunter, co-founder of Adzuna, said: “As economists point to ONS data that suggests hiring rates are levelling off, the live picture from advertised jobs tells a different story.

“Our January figures show hiring is approaching pandemic-era levels, and with graduate roles falling to a record low, this suggests the market is far from being on stable footing – yet.”

Yet Hunter identified indicators of resilience in consistent wage increases and robust labour expansion in certain sectors such as teaching and cleaning.

He said: “For jobseekers in early 2026, the market remains challenging, with fewer vacancies and intense competition, but continued wage growth suggests employers are still willing to pay for the right skills.”

Graduate vacancies dropped beneath 10,000 for the first time since Adzuna’s tracker commenced in 2016, having nearly halved year-on-year (down 45 per cent).

Youth unemployment stands at its highest level – 16.1 per cent – since 2014 and has risen above the EU average for the first time.

Entry-level positions declined four per cent annually to 197,044 vacancies.

IT remained the highest-paid sector in January, with average salaries climbing to £63,428, whilst maintenance jobs experienced the largest annual decline in pay at three per cent.

Australia’s share market has retreated from the previous week’s record high as investors weigh the latest twist in the Trump tariff saga.

The S&P/ASX200 fell 55.4 points on Monday, down 0.61 per cent to 9,026, as the broader All Ordinaries gave up 51.7 points, or 0.56 per cent, to 9,251.5.

Gold miners were a lonely success story, helping lift the basic materials sector 1.2 per cent as investors sought safe havens following US President Donald Trump’s threat to lift global tariffs to 15 per cent after a US court ruled against his previous tariffs.

While local markets got off to a shaky start, the impacts on Australia’s economy should be minor, IG Market analyst Tony Sycamore said.

“It doesn’t really impact our GDP (gross domestic product) given we don’t have a huge export sector to the US,” he told AAP.

“This isn’t a toxic outcome for the Australian stock market or for Australian exporters net-net, and it may actually turn out to be a boon because China, where most of our exports go, has gotten out of it with a lower effective tariff rate.”

Only three of 11 local sectors ended the session higher, led by a 1.5 per cent boost to basic materials as investors ploughed back into gold stocks.

Spot gold is buying $US5,156 ($A7,294) an ounce, supporting names such as Evolution Mining and Northern Star, which each rallied 3.5 per cent.

Iron ore giants were mixed, with BHP lifting to its best-ever closing price of $54.02, while Rio Tinto and Fortescue fell behind.

Lynas Rare Earths ticked higher ahead of its earnings update later in the week and lithium producers Liontown and PLS each gained more than three per cent.

Financials were heavy, down 1.2 per cent as all four banks sold off, led by a 2.3 per cent slump in ANZ shares.

Commonwealth Bank lost 0.6 per cent to $178.53, but has held onto most of its recent earnings season gains.

Energy stocks tumbled 1.7 per cent despite oil prices hovering near recent highs as tensions between Iran and the US persist.

Coal producers were also in the red while uranium stocks ran into profit-taking after strong performances the previous week.

Ampol shares faded more than two per cent as its first-half statutory net profit after tax fell by roughly a third on the equivalent half to $82.4 million.

IT stocks were the worst-performing segment, down 4.6 per cent despite a positive lead from Wall Street on Friday, as concerns about artificial intelligence disruption to software companies loomed.

Health care was also under pressure, the sector losing 2.4 per cent as CSL tanked to its lowest price in more than six years.

The slip came despite strong earnings and guidance from Fisher and Paykel Healthcare (up 4.0 per cent) and Regis Healthcare (up 7.6 per cent).

Consumer cyclical stocks gave up almost 1.8 per cent in a broad-based slump that overshadowed positive earnings reports from Kogan (up 5.5 per cent) and Adairs (up 10.5 per cent).

Looking ahead, earnings season continues with Woolworths and Nine Entertainment among companies reporting on Tuesday and Fortescue, Yancoal, Domino’s and Qantas to follow later in the week.

The Australian dollar is buying 70.74 US cents, up from 70.43 US cents on Friday afternoon.

January inflation figures come out on Wednesday, and any upward surprise in price growth could significantly increase the odds of a Reserve Bank interest rate cut in March.

ON THE ASX:

* The S&P/ASX200 fell 55.4 points, or 0.61 per cent, to 9,026

* The broader All Ordinaries lost 51.7 points, or 0.56 per cent, to 9,251.5

CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:

One Australian dollar trades for:

* 70.74 US cents, from 70.43 US cents at 5pm AEDT on Friday 

* 109.25 Japanese yen, from 109.37 Japanese yen

* 59.84 euro cents, from 59.92 euro cents

* 52.32 British pence, from 52.38 British pence

* 118.19 NZ cents, from 118.3 NZ cents