Everyone likes a Top Ten List. They are wonderful cheat sheets for simplifying complex topics. They are orderly. Quick to digest. And oddly satisfying. And who doesn’t need easy, satisfying order after the year we’ve all had?
But Top Ten lists can also spark considerable debate about important topics. They can provide clarity that supports action. While 2025 has understandably left us all a bit dazed and confused, 2026 can and should be different.
In this spirit, we are proud to present our Borderless Top Ten List: Things Businesses Must Do In 2026. It is our holiday and New Year’s gift to you. May you experience thoughtful and deliberate business clarity and action in the New Year. And, yes, of course, joy, peace, health and happiness too. We are a human-centric business after all.
So here we go. Before you head off for a much needed break, it will be nice to have a headstart of your business priorities for 2026.
No. 10 – Disengage the Pause Button: We get it. It’s been a disruptive and uncertain year, on a global scale. Risk aversion runs rampant. It is a natural response to hit pause and reflect, and to try to regain some balance. But if you are waiting for stability as you understood it to return, stop doing so. 2026 is the time to embrace equilibrium in turbulent waters and pull the trigger again. And, hey, when you do so? We recommend honing your “fluid intelligence” skills. The need to learn and process new information quickly is the new normal.
No. 9 – Up-Skill Your Board: Your Board holds some weighty responsibilities that are particularly onerous in times of disruption, further challenged by current ethical dilemmas. We don’t have to look beyond the headlines to see that most Boards are not up to the task. If your Board is not re-assessing its capabilities on its own, it is time to hold up the mirror.
No. 8 – Technology is not your old IT: Remember when IT was some mysterious ancillary support function that sends you trick compliance emails and fixes your computers? Not any more. Technology is infiltrating everything we do and it is integrating into our workflows quicker than you can say ‘process’. We are seeing some interesting ways of handling this. Human Resources managing a reimagined IT function? Now this recognises the fundamental shifts occurring in both of these functions.
No. 7 – AI Continuous Learning: Employee learning and development in the age of AI is truly exciting, but it must start with a commitment to continuous learning about AI at all levels of your organisation. And, yes, this means executives and Boards too. In fact, this is perhaps one of the biggest leadership competency changes that must be prioritized. Leading your business without a continuous curiosity for and understanding of these technological changes and their potential impact is perhaps the quickest way to make you and your business irrelevant. And, please, pick carefully where and how you use AI. It is a mistake to pretend that people can’t tell the difference.
No. 6 – Re-Imagine Workflows: Don’t just slap AI tools on top of existing workflows. This is the best way to limit the effectiveness of both. We are in the ultimate change management moment, but to get it right, you must reimagine your workflows with AI in mind and be ready to make reimagination a continuous improvement competency. Remember that merged Human Resources and IT department above? Is it starting to make sense? The ultimate challenge in 2026 is understanding the unique new needs of a Human + Agent work environment.
No. 5 – Don’t Forget All the Lessons You Learned from DEI: We have all sorts of reasons for treasuring the power of diverse and inclusive workplaces. Our Borderless team is the living, breathing embodiment of all the good that flows from those values. But the truth is that population and demographics alone will require businesses to seek talent from all of their wonderfully diverse pools. This is one of your most powerful competitive advantages. Don’t squander it by failing to nurture an environment that supports it.
No. 4 – Fight Misogyny: Maybe we could have included this in No. 6, but it is too important. It needed a carve-out. Women are not a minority. They represent more than half of the world’s population. They are your leaders, your colleagues, your customers, your suppliers, and your family. We are sad that we even have to put this on the list, but the rise and embrace of misogynistic behaviours at the highest levels of our society make this an imperative call-to-action for 2026. And remember those population and demographic warnings? Allowing misogyny to flourish in your workplace (and rewarding those who perpetrate it) is not only wrong, it is business suicide.
No. 3 – Re-Tool Flexibility – Don’t Abandon It: The best thing to arise during the pandemic was the reworking of the workplace to enable all of us to meet the demands of work and life flexibly. We know this has not been easy to manage, and post-pandemic retooling may be necessary, but rolling back to an inflexible way of working is not the answer. Trust us on this. We have our ears in the market.
No. 2 – Invest In Young Professional Development: While short-sighted leaders are giddily decimating their entry-level positions and bashing university-level education, smart businesses will be re-investing in them. One of the most sought-after competencies is analytical thinking. A combination of traditional education and on-the-job business-relevant training remains the best formula for cultivating these and many other business cross-functional, collaborative, and networking skills. It’s time to re-invest in meaningfully designed (and paid) work-study and entry-level leadership development rotation programs. Leaving talented young people unemployed makes no sense whatsoever for anyone.
No. 1 – Be More Human: What will you do with the time that your AI agents free up? At Borderless, we were able to answer this question very quickly. We will spend more time listening, connecting, strategising with and supporting. More time for human-centricity is the best way to improve the value of the services we deliver. It is also the best way for you to spark innovation, creativity, and engagement in your business.
We wish you an easy slide into the New Year. Your Borderless team is already there waiting for you!
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