As global conflicts escalate, Canadian organizations face a new test of leadership
When a US-Israeli air war over Iran is dominating headlines and federal leaders are under pressure to explain Canada’s stance, the conflict isn’t just a foreign policy story — it’s a workplace story, too.
New polling from the Angus Reid Institute finds Canadians themselves are sharply divided over the conflict: half of respondents oppose the air strikes, while about one in three support it. Nearly half say the world is now less safe because of these actions, and a similar share feel the US is less safe as well.
In other words, a large portion of the Canadian population — and many workers — are anxious, conflicted, and watching events closely.
Global instability and a diverse Canadian workforce
At the same time, the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Risks Report 2026 warns that work is entering “a far more contested and unstable era” marked by geopolitical rivalry, social fragmentation and statebased armed conflict as a top nearterm risk. For organizations in a country such as Canada, with a diverse workforce that includes people with family, roots, or identities tied to conflict zones, almost any global crisis is likely to be personal for someone on the team.
For Lola Obomighie, Vice President of People, Culture, and Organizational Effectiveness at Northumberland Hills Hospital in Cobourg, Ont., leadership in these moments starts long before a crisis hits. It starts with leadership being visible, accessible, and present, she says.
“There has to be a relational foundation to start off with, or we’re not going to start connecting when there are geopolitical issues,” says Obomighie. “Presumably, we have a connection with our staff and the people who follow us, so there’s a platform and a baseline, and it’s building off of that — let every leader have a good relationship with the people that they lead, and then it makes conversations like this easy.”
What affected employees need
Obomighie also stresses the importance of not presuming what employees need in the face of disturbing global events. “I was in a meeting the other day and I said, ‘Does anyone have any family members in the Middle East or anyone who is a loved one there?’, and they all said, ‘No, it’s terrible, what’s happening,’ she says. “So the point being, we need to ask people what they need and what they want at the time, recognizing that it changes, but also not making assumptions about what people want or what people need.”
Either way, having a good relationship between leaders and employees allows leadership to be present so employees can feel comfortable enough to express any concerns or needs, whether they’re directly affected or not, says Obomighie.
Cailey Brown, head of HR at Skip in Winnipeg, believes that organizational responses to war and unrest must start with empathy and concrete support, along with just being present. “The world is a very big and very small place right now, and it’s important to acknowledge that you might have a colleague who has family in a location that’s in that conflict zone, and to show empathy and support,” says Brown. “And it never hurts to reach out or even send an email or post something to say, ‘We know that this is happening in the world,’ and point to the resources we have to make sure people have them at their fingertips, that they know where they are.”
Brown provides an example from her own experience in the current Middle East conflict: “We have colleagues in Israel right now, and so I’ve reached out to them directly and said, ‘Hey, I’m thinking about you’ and showing that support.”
Global instability as a people risk
The WEF risk outlook paints a coming decade in which societal, economic, and geopolitical threats all intensify rather than recede, and for HR leaders, this is “not just background context.” Persistent instability shows up as rising anxiety, mental strain, and a higher risk of burnout and disengagement when organizations fail to adapt, according to the report.
In Canada, the Angus Reid poll underscores how quickly external events can polarize opinion. In diverse Canadian workplaces, that lack of consensus could be mirrored in team meetings, instant messages, and oneonone checkins.
In a Canadian context, where employees may have ties to the Middle East, Ukraine, Russia, or other places experiencing unrest, the practical lesson is to create structured but human ways for managers to check in. Asking open, nonintrusive questions and explicitly inviting people to share what support would help – from workload relief to quiet flexibility – respects both diversity of experience and individual agency, according to Obomighie.
Resilient system supports resilient people
The WEF risks report calls on senior people leaders to focus on building organizational resilience through scenariobased workforce planning, flexible work design and stronger succession pipelines, and to treat mental health and psychosocial safety as strategic priorities in an era of ongoing instability. Obomighie argues this requires rethinking what — and who — we label as “resilient.”
“My opinion is that even if someone is resilient and you put them within a system that isn’t resilient, they’re not going to be able to thrive,” she says. “And we build resilient systems in a psychologically and physically safe way, but also making sure that we have an environment where people listen and come together, building trust within the organization, and making sure that the organization is inclusive so everyone can show up with their authentic selves — with the good, the bad, or the indifferent.”
Obomighie adds that leadership itself must be reimagined as a service role calibrated to what different people need from their managers during times of global conflict. “When a leader comes into the equation, it’s not the question of this is how I like things done, but rather what kind of leader do you need me to be so that you can bring your best self?” she says. “The roles are kind of reversed, along with diplomacy, tact, and that emotional intelligence, which often gets lost in the day-to-day operations.”
In globally sensitive moments, that diplomacy and emotional intelligence include reading the room, spotting when someone is “off their game,” and knowing when to create space, when to step in, and when to escalate, adds Obomighie.
Balancing culture with business operations
Brown notes that in volatile times, one of the most powerful capabilities leaders can demonstrate is a willingness to prioritize care, even when operations must continue.
“I like to put showing care for employees first and foremost — sometimes people need a day, or sometimes people need time, and that’s okay,” says Brown. “We want people to be at their best, so to take that proactive approach of making sure people are met where they are and taking care of them first — just being open and honest that this is business and we need to run our business, but you’re also a human and sometimes you need to take care of yourself first.”
Brown believes that dual message — business continuity alongside permission to step back and look after oneself — is central to keeping organizations both compassionate and operationally resilient when global conflicts are stirring deep emotions.
Looking ahead, both Obomighie and Brown point to the need for more proactive preparation by leadership. The WEF report suggests senior people leaders will be expected to build scenariobased plans, equip managers to navigate polarization, and guard psychological safety as an ongoing strategic concern. In a diverse Canadian workforce living through an era of war, social unrest, and economic strain, the real test of leadership may be whether organizations can become — and remain — places of stability, fairness, and humane connection when the world outside is anything but.
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