Right now, the chances are that the world is changing faster than your organization. And it won’t be slowing down any time soon.

If your organization is stuck in the old model of change – unfreeze, move, refreeze – sooner or later you’ll fall so far behind that you fall over. Instead of relying solely on change management skills, what you also need now is Adaptability Intelligence. When you move your people from fear of change to freedom to change, you set them up for higher productivity, better leadership and transformational change – forever.

Those who are more adaptable don’t just bounce back from adversity, they bounce higher, able to see any change as the chance to make a difference to others and to challenge themselves. They have the confidence to face an uncertain future knowing that they’re ready to make the most of whatever happens next.

When everything changes, all the time, adaptability is the only future-proof skill, and the one that unlocks all the others.

Rich Alderton has been leading change for over 25 years, in roles that have included head of a billion-dollar supply chain, regional CEO of a global No.1, and board member of a listed company. He now runs a leadership development practice, with a diverse client list that ranges from agritech start-ups in NZ to the UK’s NHS.

‘An uplifting and practical reminder that great leadership starts with who you are, not just what you do.’ – Eve Brunton, Operations Director, The NHS Business Services Authority

‘Gets to the heart of what actually needs to shift – how people think and feel about change itself.’ – Greg Galstaun, VP of Global Strategic Engagements, Beyond

‘Understandable, urgent, and immediately usable. Every leadership team should read this book.’ – Michael Henderson, Corporate Anthropologist

Foreword v

Introduction: Why adaptability changes everything 1

GROUND LEVEL: THE FOUNDATIONS OF ADAPTABILITY INTELLIGENCE

1 The Adaptability Intelligence model 23

LEVEL 1: OVERCOMING FEAR (SELF- CONTROL)

2 Fear of change 37

3 Antidotes to fear of change 55

LEVEL 2: MANAGING ANXIETY (SELF-ASSURANCE)

4 Anxiety about change 73

5 Antidotes to anxiety about change 87

LEVEL 3: CREATING IMPACT (SELF- ESTEEM)

6 Impact from change 107

7 Stimulants to create impact from change 115

LEVEL 4: ACHIEVING FREEDOM (SELF-ACTUALIZATION)

8 Freedom to change 153

9 Stimulants to freedom to change 163

NEXT LEVEL: BEYOND A LEADERSHIP SKILL

10 Cultural integration 195 11. Conclusion: Adaptability as a way of life 209

About the author 223

References 225

Index 241

FORMAT / ISBN / PUBLICATION DATE / RRP

Paperback / 9781805760030 / September 29, 2026 / £15.99

Hardback / 9781805760023 / September 29, 2026 / £25.99

Ebook / 9781805760047 / September 28, 2026 / £0.99

Paperback and eBook Bundle / £16.24

Rich Alderton

Rich Alderton has been leading change for over 25 years, in roles that have included head of a billion-dollar supply chain, regional CEO of a global No.1, and board member of a listed company. Change has defined his own career, taking him from Aberdeen to Auckland, and from Manufacturing to Marketing. He now runs a leadership development practice, with a diverse client list that ranges from agritech start-ups in NZ to the UK’s NHS.

Rich is emerging as a thought-leader on Adaptability, a non-negotiable skill that he recognized was missing at all levels as he made his way from the shopfloor to the C-suite. He’s a regular guest on podcasts, an experienced public speaker, and he wrote the foreword to As it Turns Out – No One’s Got Their Sh*t Together: Learnings from inside the Collective Intelligence journey by Collective Intelligence founder Ian Harvey.

Rich has a laser-clear purpose: to help people enjoy rather than endure the life of change that lies ahead for us all.