Leading in Complexity
Building the Capability Australia Needs
Many of the defining challenges of our time do not arrive neatly packaged or easily solved. They are interconnected, fast-moving and resistant to traditional approaches to leadership. From declining trust and social fragmentation, to technological disruption, climate pressure and institutional strain, Australia is operating in an era where complexity is no longer the exception — it is the context.
In 2025, the Menzies Leadership Foundation continued to strengthen its partnership with the Australian National University Leadership & Complexity Lab, advancing a shared ambition to build the leadership capability required for this new environment.
Established with the support of a two-year Foundation grant, the Lab was designed to bridge an enduring gap between leadership theory and leadership practice. While many organisations recognise that complexity is reshaping decision-making, fewer have access to practical tools, research-backed frameworks and developmental pathways that help leaders respond effectively. The Lab exists to meet that need.
Led through a significant phase of establishment and growth by Dr Aiden M. A. Thornton, the Lab brought together contemporary leadership research, systems thinking, adult development and applied practice to help individuals and institutions navigate uncertainty with greater wisdom, adaptability and collective capacity.
During 2025, Dr Thornton elected to conclude his role in order to pursue new academic and consultancy opportunities. The Foundation acknowledges his important contribution in shaping the Lab’s early vision, profile and momentum.
The next chapter is now being led by Dr Kerry Elliott, whose appointment provides both continuity and renewed opportunity to deepen the Lab’s focus, strengthen its integration with the ANU School of Cybernetics and the College of Systems and Society, and expand its applied impact across sectors.
Throughout the year, the Lab successfully secured initial funding, progressed multiple projects and developed a strong pipeline of new opportunities for 2026 and beyond. This momentum reflects growing demand for leadership approaches capable of responding to complexity in practical settings.
A major focus of the year was translating rigorous research into accessible public insight. Through collaborative storytelling, convening and strategic communications, the Foundation worked with the Lab to bring complex ideas into clearer public conversation. Themes such as adaptive leadership, collective efficacy, developmental readiness and systems awareness were increasingly positioned as practical necessities rather than academic abstractions.
This matters because many of today’s leadership challenges cannot be solved through authority alone. They require leaders who can work across boundaries, hold competing tensions, learn in real time and mobilise others toward shared outcomes.
The Lab’s practical relevance was particularly visible through the evolution of the Menzies School Leadership Incubator, which relocated into the Lab during 2025. This created a stronger bridge between research and application, particularly in education leadership.
Work through the Incubator continued to develop tools and frameworks that help school leaders and collectives navigate 21st century complexity. These included the Rising Team for Schools platform, a Skills Matrix mapping technical to adaptive leadership capabilities, collective efficacy measurement tools, and “learning sandpits” that allow leaders to test ideas safely in real-world environments.
The strength of this work was recognised internationally in 2025, when a joint symposium proposal was accepted for the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement (ICSEI). Titled Reimagining Leadership for a Complex World, the symposium showcased Australian innovation in distributed leadership, team-based capability building and complexity-informed leadership development.
For the Foundation, this partnership sits at the heart of our Insights agenda: helping Australia understand what leadership now requires, and how it can be cultivated at scale.
As we look ahead, the ANU Leadership & Complexity Lab represents more than a research collaboration. It is an investment in national capability — generating ideas, evidence and practical pathways for a society navigating profound change.
Because in an age of complexity, better leadership will not come from stronger control alone. It will come from greater awareness, stronger collaboration and the courage to lead differently.
Australia is operating in an era where complexity is no longer the exception — it is the context. Through its partnership with the ANU Leadership & Complexity Lab, the Menzies Leadership Foundation continued to bridge the enduring gap between leadership theory and practice — bringing rigorous research into public conversation and, from the evolution of the Menzies School Leadership Incubator to international recognition at the ICSEI Congress, demonstrating the growing relevance and reach of this work.
The Lab represents more than a research collaboration. It is an investment in national capability — and if you believe that better leadership will come not from stronger control, but from greater awareness, deeper collaboration and the courage to lead differently, we invite you to stay connected with the Menzies Leadership Foundation and the work building the leadership capability our times demand.
