Last month, we hosted a webinar on what it takes to lead with a human-centered approach through the difficult and emotional challenge of restructuring. Our experts focused on strategies for delivering transparency without causing panic, and what leaders can do to authentically frame restructuring as part of a larger-scale, longer-term plan for transformation.

As cost containment, course correction and reorganization remain salient themes for businesses in 2026, Jenn, Greg and Danny return to the topic, exploring more deeply how the best leaders navigate the human struggle of change through these emotional, complex moments.

Danny: In the webinar, we talked about the problems that can emerge when a leader thinks about their job amid restructuring as simply crafting the right messaging, without focusing on how that messaging is delivered or how they’re showing up. I wanted to ask: how does it manifest when a leader is doing all this well? What are signs leaders can look for as confirmation that their messaging is truly resonating with people throughout the company?

Greg: There are several signs that indicate a leader is connecting with their teams:

• How engaged are employees? Are they continuing to perform and deliver as expected of them? Are they doing this by leaning in, if applicable, to new ways of working? Are they asking questions to clarify anything or learn more?

• Do employees feel they are in a psychologically safe space? Is there encouragement of open dialogue? Do they feel they can honestly express their concerns without fear of retaliation?

• Is team morale steady and are there promising indicators that the employees who have remained through the restructuring plan to stay long term?

• Is team collaboration evident and being guided by the new structure and objectives?

As we mentioned in the webinar, another part of what we do in these client engagements is real behavioral change coaching for leaders—what’s your body language, how are you holding yourself, how are you coming across to your teams? Is there a disconnect between what you are saying and how you are saying it? Just as it’s essential for a leader to recognize these things in their team members, it’s essential that they understand how to role model all of it as well.

Jenn: I'd add that leaders’ actions and behaviors serve as powerful symbols that communicate their values, priorities and commitment to the vision. This means demonstrating the behaviors they expect from their team, ensuring alignment between their actions and their stated goals or values. In addition to everything Greg said, I think it’s important to look for indicators, from survey data and elsewhere, that tell you whether employees really agree that leaders are walking the talk in practice.

Danny: Why do you think all this is so important?

Greg: These actions and behaviors have a major impact on how employees feel and experience a company’s energy. Energy is one dimension of Gagen’s “Six Levers” framework, which we use to measure and understand an organization’s culture. (“Behaviors” is another one of these levers.) This methodology enables us to really uncover foundational issues within the employee experience. We define energy as what employees sense and feel—the atmosphere, ambiance, tone, pace and speed of how work gets done. Going back to the idea of behavioral change in leaders, energy is so critical because creating a positive experience isn’t just about doing the things that Jenn shared above. It is also about how you do them. Thinking through this lens, all the things we talked about before have a huge impact on energy.

This matters because leaders often lean on their own power within the hierarchy, but ultimately, lasting change is rarely delivered because you wield power; it comes to life because you wield real influence.

Danny: Can you say more about this distinction you’re drawing between power and influence?

Greg: A leader whom employees truly trust, follow and admire has influence, and that influence makes them powerful. Someone whose position is higher up in the hierarchy, who manages people and situations, usually has power, but it doesn’t mean they are powerful in anything other than the org chart. Quite simply: good leaders encourage action and foster genuine commitment; ineffective leaders enforce through authority. They coerce to achieve compliance.

Restructuring magnifies this contrast because it inherently disrupts established norms, roles and relationships. This creates a high-stakes environment, defined by resistance to change, emotional upheaval and the need for both immediate action and long-term commitment. That isn’t to say power is a useless tool during these times. It may help make an immediate impact. But leaders should keep in mind there may be an associated cost in terms of their ability to get sustained buy-in from team members if they aren’t focused on making sure that buy-in is authentic, and choiceful about when to use their technical power and when to back off.

Jenn: I’d add that it’s the responsibility of leaders at all levels of an organization to act as culture carriers. That means understanding the main culture and recognizing the subcultures that exist within different teams, departments or regions. It also means, prioritizing working across silos and breaking down barriers that can isolate teams or functions. Collaboration across these boundaries is essential for maintaining alignment and driving change. Finally, it’s important for people across the organization to regularly come together to reflect and check themselves. This ensures that their actions, decisions and behaviors remain aligned with the shared vision and values, reinforcing a unified and healthy culture.

Danny: Leaders often seize moments of restructuring or major change to re-think their organizational purpose. Jenn, we weren’t able to get into purpose in the webinar, but I know you have a lot of experience with the topic. Can you talk a bit about what leaders can do to make sure a reimagined organizational purpose or mission doesn’t just land like a new poster on the wall, but really changes the way people think and work within a company?

Jenn: I previously worked for a Fortune 100 company. We realized that having a solid business strategy wasn’t enough. We needed to redefine our purpose and people strategy and align both with the larger business strategy.

Introducing purpose was a game-changer. It wasn’t something the company had before. The purpose we landed on was clear and inspiring. But defining it was more the beginning of the journey than the end of it. We knew that for purpose to truly resonate, everyone in the organization had to understand, embrace and live it.

To make that happen, we rolled out leader training programs globally to make sure leaders at all levels could articulate and embody the purpose. We also measured how well the purpose and values were understood. We conducted a series of focus groups and interviews to hear how employees articulated the purpose, and how they demonstrated it in their work. We also used pulse surveys after town halls and other meetings to gauge whether leadership was leading with the new purpose. Once we started seeing clear signs that the purpose and values were clearly understood and showing up in key parts of the business—strategic decisions, customer engagements, employee satisfaction—we baked it into the global rewards system to hold leaders and team members accountable.

This approach helped us create a culture where purpose wasn’t just, as you said, a statement on a wall—it became a shared belief system that guided decisions and behaviors across the organization.

Danny: In your work with clients, is it common for leaders to bring this level of diligence to reigniting an organization's purpose?

Jenn: I don’t know that it’s common, but it’s what’s required for something to truly stick. As we’ve talked about, sometimes organizations think that they need to invest more in process than in people. But as we say at Gagen, organizations don’t transform. People do. To get the full value out of any change—whether it’s an acquisition, a divestiture, a new corporate strategy or a large-scale transformation—you must invest in navigating the human struggle of change.

For more on how we can help with restructuring, reach out to Jenn or Greg, or read our 2026 Priorities Paper on the topic.