The Geopolitical Shifts & Global Consequences

• The Geopolitical Shifts & Global Consequences

The Geopolitical Shifts & Global Consequences Specialization Courses

Overview

Somehow like the continental drifts, major geopolitical shifts have ancient origins which evolve slowly until they eventually degenerate into a very sudden cataclysm with brutal and immediate consequences. Geopolitics is basically the study of the influence of political and economic geography on international politics, national power, foreign policies. It is now being used by corporations and is a tool available to business executives too easily obsessed by their inboxes, short term or quarterly results who tend to isolate issues and be excessively backward-looking in their analyses as a result. It allows to focus on the long-time and a number of factors which may supplement traditional and quantitative academic teachings. Identities, religion, minorities, quest for resources, technological revolutions, demography… typically impact regional imbalances and subsequently expansion of corporations. Apprehend these subjects allows to understand the extent of a problematic and help strategic decision making in a world gone now global. What company can, for example, ignore the economic opportunities with Russia and not to seize some of the subtleties of the Ukrainian crisis in order to draw some conclusions for its business scope in Central and Eastern Europe and to some extent with neighboring countries in the Balkans and with Turkey? What manager may simply miss the essence of the conflict in Irak, which goes well beyond religious issues. If its impact on the evolution of oil prices seems relatively obvious, what about the big neighbor i.e. the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, alone richer than all other countries in the Middle East combined. Succession to the throne could be influenced, as well as relations with Qatar, the war in Syria, Egypt, Libya and more broadly its traditional allies. Coincidentally, the role of Russia in the Middle East, especially with Iran and Iraq gives a different perspective to the Russian-Ukrainian crisis and some subtleties.

It is sometimes difficult though to draw operational implications from geopolitical analysis for concrete business purposes. Geopolitics can nevertheless help business executives broaden horizons when they have to make difficult assessments or decisions in relation to allocation of resources, growth strategies, alliances, M & A or re-structuring business units abroad. This course is meant to offer participants as well a reflection as an operational tool that can provide enough flexibility to deal with geopolitical uncertainty and make them sufficiently resilient to overcome or even leverage geopolitical shifts and their global consequences.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge how to…

Understand the strategic landscape in which decision are taken

Assess the business risks and opportunities entailed by geopolitical dynamics

Monitor changes in the international landscape, including the probability and high-impact of events with major economic or business consequences

Integrate geopolitical analysis in the firm’s broader international and risk-mitigation strategies

Develop a long-tem, consistent strategy and vision, beyond mere day-to-day tactics