20 ways businesses adapt to industry changes without losing momentum

When external pressures force internal change, how you respond can either protect or reshape your brand, operations, and client relationships.

Every business encounters moments when the industry shifts demand a fast, thoughtful response. Whether it’s a regulatory change, market disruption, or evolving client expectations, adapting effectively is rarely straightforward.

If you’ve faced this kind of pressure, you know how complex it can be to make operational changes while maintaining trust and continuity. To that end, Fast Company Executive Board members discuss real-world challenges companies have faced and how they’ve adjusted without compromising their brand or service quality.

ENCOURAGE YOUR EMPLOYEES TO STAY CREATIVE AND RESOURCEFUL.

Lately, the biggest challenge has been to keep our employees from turning into ChatGPT operators instead of the creative, resourceful and whole people we hired. The temptation they have to ask AI to do all kinds of tasks is tremendous, and many are succumbing to that urge. I hope they return to being human beings soon. If all they do is regurgitate ChatGPT, we can probably ask a bot to do that. - Arar Han, Sabot Family Companies work, you’ve got an issue. The solution is to ask, “Why are you late? What’s going on?” - Arar Han, Sabot Family Companies

Extract from: 20 ways businesses adapt to industry changes without losing momentum published on FAST COMPANY EXECUTIVE BOARD | 04-16-2025