What If Waste Isn’t the End?
At a national association, the administrative team was feeling stretched. Meetings were back-to-back, file sharing was chaotic, and onboarding new staff took weeks longer than it should. During a routine review, one administrator quietly noted, “We’ve got three systems doing the job of one.” Instead of dismissing the comment, leadership invited the admin team into a process redesign session. What emerged was a whole new workflow—fewer tools, shared checklists, cross-training—and a noticeable boost in morale and efficiency.
That’s a small example of circular leadership. It wasn’t a sustainability initiative like you might expect when we talk about a circular economy, but it was about recognizing untapped value, empowering people to share insights, and making systems more adaptive.
In Part 1 of this blog series, we explored how the circular economy is relevant not just to manufacturers and procurement teams, but to service-based and knowledge-sector leaders too. And in Part 2, we looked at the leadership blind spots that can block circular thinking, even when we believe we’re being innovative or inclusive.
This post builds on that foundation by focusing on leadership vision—the ability to spot potential in people, processes, and patterns that others might overlook. It ties closely to how we approach purposeful leadership, inclusive cultures, adaptive strategies, and values-driven decision making.
This isn’t about instinct or guesswork. It’s a skill. One that requires curiosity, empathy, and the courage to challenge assumptions. Leadership vision is about seeing what’s possible and helping others see it too.
Reframing Waste: What Are You Missing?
Think of waste not just as physical stuff, but as untapped value: ideas that never get voiced, talent that goes unnoticed, processes that are repeated because “that’s how we’ve always done it.”
Visionary leaders ask different questions. Instead of “how do we fix this?” they ask, “what’s possible here?”
A university leader realized their course scheduling system was unintentionally disadvantaging part-time students. Instead of patching the process, they reimagined the entire flow—with input from students, faculty, and admin—making it more equitable and efficient.
Or consider a support team member in a mid-sized firm who mentioned they had a background in instructional design. With a little encouragement, they helped revamp onboarding and internal training—turning previously unused skills into team-wide benefits.
That’s circular thinking in action. It’s not just smarter operations, it’s systems-level transformation rooted in inclusion.
Coaching a Culture of Circular Thinking
For leaders—whether you’re managing HR, admin, or the organization as a whole—developing circular vision isn’t something you do alone. It’s something you cultivate in your team.
You might start by:
- Asking your team, “What’s frustrating you lately?” and really listening
- Creating regular space for reflection—not just reporting
- Encouraging team members to bring forward underused tools, ideas, or talents
- Framing challenges as opportunities to rethink rather than simply solve
This approach shifts your leadership from directing to developing. And it requires a balance of emotional intelligence, patience and curiosity.
At Padraig, we coach leaders to build those muscles. We help surface assumptions and test them with curiosity. We work on recognizing limiting patterns, navigating complexity without rushing to fix, and leading with empathy.
Because the kind of leadership that thrives in a circular economy isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about fostering the kind of culture where new answers can emerge.
From Waste to What’s Next: Real Shifts in Practice
Let’s look at how Canadian leaders are applying this lens:
Procurement: A provincial team started sourcing not just based on cost, but on circular impact—favouring vendors who build in reuse and repair. The result? Lower lifecycle costs and stronger supplier relationships.
Municipal Planning: One city department used underutilized buildings to co-locate services, reducing travel time for citizens and fostering collaboration across teams.
Healthcare: A hospital restructured its discharge planning with social workers at the table thus spotting risks earlier and improving outcomes with fewer re-admissions.
Construction: A mid-size developer partnered with a college trades program to repurpose off cuts for student learning. They reduced waste and supported workforce development.
In every case, a leader saw not just what was—but what could be.
What Visionary Leadership Makes Possible
This kind of vision isn’t lofty, it’s practical and leads to:
- Systems that adapt more easily to change
- Cultures where people speak up with ideas
- Solutions that meet multiple needs at once
And it’s deeply human. Because circular leadership is about honouring what already exists—people, resources, relationships—and helping it evolve.
Coach’s Questions
Where might my assumptions be limiting what I see? What’s being overlooked in our systems, and why? Who has insights I haven’t heard from yet? What’s one system, resource, or policy you’ve written off that could serve a new purpose?
This wraps our three-part series on the circular economy and leadership. If you missed the earlier posts, you can find them here:
