The Need for Risk in Times of Uncertainty

Why do leaders become more risk averse in times of uncertainty?

Risk aversion is part of our biology and above all else we tend to be driven by self-preservation. Yet, becoming risk averse is the opposite of what is needed to operate at the speed required to adapt to the challenges faced today. The key word here is faster.

This focus on speed has spread to every industry and every function of a company: product development, supply chain, technology and tools, sales and marketing, digital transformation, everything. Organizations today don’t need economies of scale, they need economies of speed.

What does that mean for you as a leader? You—and your organization—must take more risks just to keep up. Every time you back away from a risk you know you should be taking, you slow down your organization and this impairs your ability to adapt to the uncertain, changing environment you face.

In this masterclass, you will learn from our proprietary study of 34,000 people (to be published in Harvard Business Review in 2025), that found a quantifiable gap between the risks people feel in their gut they should be taking and the actual risks they take. In other words, people don’t have the full conversation they want to have, or they put off making the hardest decisions. In these and other situations we’ve studied, people always wish they’d acted, and taken the risk, sooner. The gap we found was 7.56%. We named this gap, the Last 8%.

You will learn:

🔷 What the norms are on a team that slows down their speed of execution and ability to deal with uncertainty. In a study of 72,000 people, we found 67% of teams do not have a culture that is conducive to the amount of risk required today. What did we learn about the other 33% that can help you move at speed and be successful?
🔷 What one thing in common do the top performers in the world who we have worked with have, whether Olympic athletes or Navy Seals, who need to manage their emotions in life-or-death situations, or employees and leaders at fortune 500 companies who need to deliver results in high stress environments that allowed them to flourish in uncertain environments?
🔷 Concrete tools to help you manage your brain so you can lead more effectively under pressure

Featured Speaker

• Dr. JP Pawliw-Fry, President and Co-Founder of and CEO, Institute for Health and Human Potential (IHHP)

  Your teams deserve a culture where they feel valued, have a voice, and feel safe to take risks and be courageous. This is at the heart of what your organization needs to achieve great things and is the message you will get from Dr. JP Pawliw-Fry.

  Dr. JP is a New York Times bestselling author of the book, Performing Under Pressure, and a visionary who has spent the past 25 years researching the variables that drive performance in the workplace. JP has worked with some of the top organizations in the world, including a who’s who of Fortune 100 companies, helping them transform.

Host

• Dave Dinesen, COO, MacKay CEO Forums

Why Attend?

🔷 Unlock the speed advantage. Learn how to override the natural tendency toward risk aversion and instead build the muscle for faster, bolder decision-making—essential for navigating uncertainty.
🔷 Apply data-backed insights. Explore findings from a proprietary study of 34,000 people (soon to be published in Harvard Business Review) that quantify the gap between the risks leaders feel they should take and the actions they actually take—what JP calls the Last 8%.
🔷 Shift your team’s culture. Discover what separates the 33% of high-performing teams from the 67% that are stuck in low-risk, low-speed decision loops—and how to move your organization into the high-performance category.
🔷 Learn tools from elite performers. Gain practical tools and mental models drawn from training Olympic athletes, Navy SEALs, and Fortune 500 leaders—those who must perform under real pressure.
🔷 Lead with courage, not caution. Walk away with a new framework for building psychological safety and creating a culture where your people feel safe to speak up, take risks, and execute at speed.

This event is ideal for:

🔷 CEOs, Executives, and Senior Leaders responsible for navigating complex change and driving strategic initiatives under pressure.
🔷 People Leaders and HR Executives looking to foster a team culture that thrives in uncertainty and supports bold decision-making.
🔷 High-potential leaders seeking to accelerate their development and lead more effectively in high-stakes environments.
🔷 Innovation, Strategy, and Transformation Leaders tasked with pushing boundaries and helping their organizations keep pace.
🔷 Anyone who wants to lead bravely—and build teams that take meaningful risks, speak candidly, and act decisively when it matters most.

Spaces are limited, so register now to reserve your spot!