Podcast series: Meet the Geopolitical Insiders

Geopolitical risks are no longer a marginal issue for businesses – external threats are increasingly becoming a key factor in strategic decision-making. In this episode of our podcast series “Meet the Geopolitical Insiders”, Dr Benedikt Herles, Co-Lead of the Geopolitics & Defence Centre of Excellence at KPMG, discusses this topic with Marc Gustafson, Senior Director of Analysis at the Eurasia Group and former Head of the White House Situation Room as well as Chief of Intelligence at the National Security Council, and with Stefano Moritsch, Global Geopolitics Lead at KPMG International.  

Together, they discuss how the global security landscape is changing and what consequences this has for businesses. Among other things, they address hybrid threats and cyber risks, as well as the question of how companies can better anticipate geopolitical developments.

US policy influences the global economic landscape like almost no other factor. For businesses worldwide – and particularly for the European economy – decisions made in Washington have a direct impact on trade, investment and international cooperation. 

In this episode of our podcast series “Meet the Geopolitical Insiders”, Dr Benedikt Herles, Co-Lead of the Geopolitics & Defence Centre of Excellence at KPMG, welcomes US foreign policy expert Peter Rough, Senior Fellow and Director of the Centre on Europe and Eurasia at the Hudson Institute. The discussion focuses on the strategic logic behind US foreign and economic policy under President Donald Trump, the political dynamics within the Republican Party, and the question of which developments German and European companies should keep a close eye on in the coming years. 

Many of the world’s future growth markets are located in regions often referred to collectively as the ‘Global South’. These countries are increasingly pursuing their own strategic interests – and asserting themselves confidently in the geopolitical competition between major powers. 

In this episode of our podcast series “Meet the Geopolitical Insiders”, Dr Benedikt Herles, Co-Lead of the Geopolitics & Defence Centre of Excellence at KPMG, speaks with Rama Yade, Senior Director of the Africa Center at the Atlantic Council and former French minister, as well as with James Mazzarella, who previously helped shape US development policy. Together, they discuss how countries in Africa and other emerging regions are realigning their economic partnerships, the role played by China and Western nations – and why companies should already be strategically focusing on these markets today.