The Evolution of Movers and Shakers: Do Disruptors Still Have a Place in Modern Business?

The Evolution of Movers and Shakers: Do Disruptors Still Have a Place in Modern Business?

There was a time when businesses brought in high-impact individuals—movers and shakers—to drive transformation, shake things up, and push through much-needed change. These were the hired guns, the ones who could cut through bureaucracy, identify inefficiencies, and drive a company toward a more profitable and functional future. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t. But today, it feels like that model has lost its relevance.

The question is, why? Has the concept of the mover and shaker evolved, or has the business world shifted in a way that no longer makes room for them? Are disruptors now better suited for external innovation rather than internal corporate restructuring?

The Decline of the Classic Hired Gun

In the past, if a company was underperforming or struggling, senior management wouldn’t hesitate to bring in someone who could overhaul the business. These individuals were given the authority to make tough calls, restructure teams, streamline operations, and implement new strategies. Sometimes, their impact was immediate and undeniable. Other times, their changes caused more harm than good, leaving the company in worse shape than before.

COVID-19 accelerated this decline. With remote work and digital transformation taking center stage, businesses started operating in a more data-driven, transparent environment. The days of people making decisions based on charisma or relationships alone were over. Every move could be tracked, every decision scrutinized. That level of accountability left no room for those who could talk a good game but had little substance behind their strategies.

The Shift from Internal to External Disruption

What we’re seeing now is that the role of disruptors has shifted. Instead of working within companies, many of the best innovators are operating externally—creating startups, launching industry-wide solutions, and pushing change from outside traditional corporate structures. The most successful movers and shakers today are entrepreneurs, tech innovators, and market disruptors, rather than internal transformation agents.

Fractional executives and consultants are also gaining traction, offering businesses strategic insights without the long-term commitment of full-time leadership. However, their effectiveness is often limited by internal resistance. When companies bring in outside expertise but hesitate to fully embrace change, the impact is diluted, and meaningful transformation stalls before it can take hold.

Are Disruptors Valued or Feared?

This raises an important question: Do businesses still value disruptors, or are they seen as threats to stability? Today, there’s a growing preference for gradual, culturally-aligned change over radical overhauls. Companies prioritize collaboration and long-term sustainability over rapid shifts, which means that those who push too hard for change often meet resistance.

In many cases, leadership hesitates to embrace external expertise because it challenges the status quo. There’s often an underlying fear that an outsider will expose inefficiencies or weaknesses that internal teams either missed or ignored due to bandwidth constraints. And when leadership feels threatened, they’re less likely to support the very changes they sought in the first place.

Finding a New Balance

So, what’s the way forward? Businesses still need change, but the way they approach it has evolved. Instead of hiring disruptors to force transformation, companies are looking for leaders who can integrate into the culture, work within existing frameworks, and implement change in a way that feels natural rather than imposed.

It’s not that movers and shakers no longer exist—it’s that their approach has to be different. The companies that will thrive moving forward are the ones that can blend internal knowledge with external expertise, leveraging insights from those who understand the industry while also securing buy-in from their teams. Change isn’t going away—it’s just happening differently now.