Our latest Elephants in the Boardroom episode is live, with Graeme Codrington and Dean van Leeuwen exploring the Grey Elephants stampeding towards business right now.
Dean also sits down with Mar Bernal Conde, Head of Sustainable Supply Chain at Lightsource bp, for a practical, inspiring conversation on building responsible and resilient supply chains.
Why we think leaders should listen to this episode:
- See the world as it is, not as you wish it to be.
We unpack the fast-maturing multipolar world: tariffs, blocs, BRICS capacity, hypersonics, and why geopolitics is now a core business issue – not just ‘news’. - Turn compliance into competitive advantage.
From Volkswagen’s Xinjiang import block to EU due-diligence pressure, Mara shows how transparency, vendor development, and “improve, don’t just disengage” can de-risk and open new markets. - Plan for deep uncertainty (without doom).
Practical prompts for scenario planning (from regional conflicts to trade realignments) and how to build antifragile teams, supply chains, and strategy.
Stories you’ll hear
- Hot-mic geopolitics: Putin & Xi joking about “immortality” – a doorway into ageing tech, longevity, and why your strategy horizon needs stretching. [01:06]
- Primakov’s Loop: the 1999 turning-point that seeded today’s multipolar strategy – and why many boardrooms still underestimate it. [09:06]
- Tariffs & unintended consequences: how blunt tools can accelerate rival alignments and redraw trade corridors. [06:10]
- Cautionary case: Volkswagen’s US border hold over supply-chain links – the cost of poor visibility. [38:06]
- From ops to impact: Mara’s pivot to sustainability, a wise mentor’s challenge, and “humanistic management or bust”. [32:34]
- Opportunity framing: How Unilever’s shared value played as a growth lever, not a cost centre. [50:59]
- Palate-cleanser quiz: 12 countries getting ≥90% of their energy from renewables (hint: Lesotho, DRC, Ethiopia, Iceland… not who you’d expect). [24:06]
“When a Grey Elephant appears, it’s too late to prepare.
Prepare now, so you’re ahead of competitors who don’t.”
If you’d like us to facilitate a 60-minute boardroom scenario sprint (multipolar risk, supply-chain resilience, and opportunity pathways), make contact with us, and we’ll connect to set something up.
TomorrowToday empowers forward-thinking organisations to not just anticipate the future but to shape it. To learn more about the 7 Grey Elephants transforming our world, book a 30-minute strategy call with our team today.
Elephants in the Boardroom is brought to you by Achilles – helping the world’s biggest companies build ethical, sustainable, and transparent supply chains. Learn more at achilles.com.