Beyond the Buzzwords: Rethinking Business Strategy in a Fragmented World

Monday was a special day—years in the making.

Together with my colleagues Olivier Chatain and Paul Charon of Ministere de la Defense - IRSEM, Paris , we hosted a seminar titled Business Strategy in a Fragmenting World: Firms, States, and Civil Society

Much has already been said about the insights and connections that emerged (see here, here, here, here, here, and here).

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I’ll share more in the coming days, but here are four reflections that are still resonating with me:

1. Fragmentation ≠ Disintegration.

Despite headlines, globalization hasn’t gone into reverse. In fact, the ratio of global trade to GDP remains historically high. Trade barriers may rise, but firms are adapting—rewiring supply chains, not abandoning them. Resilience is not retreat.

2. AI: Good Enough May Be Good Strategy.

A provocative question surfaced: in Europe, is there a level of AI development that is “good enough” to compete? Must we always frame the narrative around delay and dependence? In a fragmented world, reframing what progress looks like might be as important as chasing the frontier.

3. Firms Don’t Do Politics… Or Do They?

Companies are still seen by many as competent and ethical actors. Whether they seek it or not, they’ve become political objects—actors with influence and, increasingly, with responsibility. The real question is not if they act, but how they interpret their role in a contested world.

4. One Plus One > Two.

Olivier and I were confident in the quality of the participants. But the level of exchange still exceeded expectations. It reminded me how deeply siloed our worlds remain—and how rare true cross-sector dialogue is. This seminar was a first step. We need a platform where business leaders, policymakers, and thinkers can truly engage. That’s a mission I’m committed to.

If you have ideas or want to collaborate, I’d love to hear from you.

In the meantime, thank you Olivier Chatain and Paul Charon as well as Kristen Rakow , Nayla Ibrahim , Anna Sow Sarr and Audrey R. .

To our wonderful participants, contributors, moderators and panelists: Dumoulin Bertrand , Kristine de Valck , Ludovic Subran , Eric Mengus , Celia Belin , Jacob Parakilas , Brad Setser, Nicolas Dross , Fabienne Hara , Maaike Okano-Heijmans , Julien Malizard , Susan Helper , Isabelle Mejean , Benjamin Nefussi , Olivier Blum , Henri vS , Clotilde Bomont, PhD , Aaron "Ronnie" Chatterji , Vincent Rapp , Guillaume Girard , Patrice Kefalas , Emlyn Korengold and Georg Wernicke .