As former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice observed at the 2026 Aspen Security Forum, “I’m very often asked, is what we’re seeing a revolution or an evolution? And I say that a revolution is what happens when you don’t see an evolution coming.”
For a generation, companies and governments have operated in a broadly predictable environment of open markets and deep global integration. That world delivered enormous growth, but it also left behind a series of imbalances, among them: a widening US–China trade gap, deep dependence on foreign suppliers for goods critical to national security, and intensifying competition for the same limited set of growth arenas. To correct some of these imbalances, governments are taking an increasingly active role in the global economy, primarily through rapid expansion of industrial policy, tariffs and trade barriers, sanctions and export controls, and other measures that can distort trade. READ MORE
Source: mckinsey.com
Companies often say they want entrepreneurs. I am not convinced they always do. What many organisations really want is someone who thinks differently, challenges accepted wisdom and brings fresh ideas. What they often do not want is the disruption that genuine entrepreneurial behaviour inevitably brings. There is an important difference.
In a multipolar world, how nations form alliances will greatly alter the power balance and the spheres of opportunity in which businesses can remain competitive. The BCG Institute Power Index helps leaders understand these increasingly complex global dynamics by consolidating data spanning more than 50 indicators across three dimensions: economic, military, and soft power.
We are pleased to welcome Ann de Grave to the Borderless team as an executive search consultant. Ann joined us on 5 October and brings considerable experience in shaping organisations, leaders and cultures across many markets and industries to our global executive search work.
