Among others changing geopolitical trends, new leadership in the major global economy redefines the global trade landscape, with disruption showing no signs of slowing down.
In particular, the implementation of tariffs by the US has triggered a chain reaction, requiring immediate adjustments and adaptations in pricing, supply chain and compliance operations, and is still deployed in long-term growth strategies.
Given the ongoing pace of change, the board must see geopolitical changes through a strategic assessment lens, and treat them as more than the context of business operations.
According to a recent report from FTI Consulting, Corporate Board Members 76% of board members surveyed said that “continuation, revival or emergence of geopolitical events in operational regions” had “some effect” or “significant impact” on the strategy.
Below are four expert recommendations on how companies and their boards can approach the current political and economic landscape.
1. Build a sustainable strategy
In April, the White House announced tariffs and 10% tax on imports in around 90 countries around the world. Next comes, given the role of federal courts in using executive orders for trade and blocking tariffs, it is difficult to predict. And the rise of competing trade blocs and the weakening of multilateral institutions imply further uncertainty.
For businesses with multinational presence, this means that the board needs to track new trade partnerships and developments globally, with knock-on effects on supply chains, capital, labor and governance.
Regardless of your perspective, the era of trade stability is over, and volatility is a new norm. In this new world, boards must consider the political motivations behind trade actions and policies in strategy and understand the impact of cascades.
“In a multipolar world, trade policy is more strategic, regional and national security-based, so understanding and addressing the political forces driving trade fragmentation is important to building sustainable plans for long-term growth.” “Companies that lean towards transparency, innovation and localization have strategic advantages.”
2. Get ready for the pivot
With so many changes every day, businesses may need to reposition themselves immediately. While US companies may be trying to find ways for companies based elsewhere to explain the state's political and economic volatility, US companies may face risks abroad.
European boards may feel that they are being captured between us and EU policies. The UK board may choose to explore risk-adjusted capital plans. The Asia-Pacific board of directors may strengthen supply chain resilience through diverse trade relations.
However, regardless of the company's location, the board must adapt to the winds and the potential for rapid changes in domestic and international trade.
“We are pleased to announce that we are committed to providing a range of services and services to our customers,” said Sallypen, Senior Managing Director of Export Control, Sanctions and Trade at FTI Consulting. “As of all the unpredictability, it is essential that the company and its board members remain agile,” she said. “The board cannot afford to treat it as a headline that passes through geopolitical volatility.”
3. Follow the trade wind
According to the 2025 What Directors Whing Study, only 8% of board members surveyed view geopolitics and international expertise as priorities in board searches. That's almost double the discovery from last year, but shows that until recently, Global Affairs' insights were not considered an important skill set for board refresh.
Given that trade policies are instrumented by various governments as a tool for domestic and international leverage, boards need to focus on political development worldwide and engage in geopolitical scenario planning that will create beneficial local influences. These types of emergency response exercises are important to ensure organizations are effective cross-border transactions, compliance with international regulations, and operational continuity.
“For 70 years, the world has steadily built a truly globalized economy, and over the past few years, it has begun to rapidly change the foundation on which it was built. For corporate directors, it means that long-term strategic planning and risk mitigation are closely linked to geopolitical trade winds.”
“It is impossible to think about responsible capital allocation without considering how trade dynamics can affect costs and, more importantly, create opportunities.”
4. Implement resilient governance
Companies and their boards must be proactive in how they approach governance. The rapid changes in external factors such as regulations, economic factors, social and environmental requirements, technological advances, cybersecurity, and geopolitical events, coupled with government institutional changes, mean that the committee's ability to quickly adapt to the disruption of its responsive strategy is important.
The board must ensure stakeholder coordination and promote cross-working plans to anticipate and respond to various developments. Continuous uncertainty must form an overall strategic approach to governance. This may mean predicting long-term regulations, economic and political instability, and scenario plans based on them.
However, “Despite the ongoing political and economic uncertainty in the US and abroad, many countries and jurisdictions have coalesced around similar sustainability reporting standards. Further transparency is inevitable, and knowing organizational data is not good governance in the long run.
Brian Kushner, senior managing director of Corporate Finance & Restructuring, added: “The board must lead the way in which it can implement aggressive risk monitoring, leveraging innovative playbooks to mitigate or adapt today's risks, and manage multiple crises simultaneously,” he said.
Often this takes the form of adding additional expertise (such as a geopolitical risk assessment), such as a financial, risk, or technology committee (if any), and taking responsibility for one of the board committees (if any), or creating a war committee in the duties, to address uncertainty and risk, and to address and manage risk.
Meredith Grifanti, senior managing director of Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Communications at FTI Consulting, says he still hears the director asks all the wrong questions about cybersecurity. “They focus on prevention, which is unrealistic in today's evolving geopolitical landscape, where opportunities for threat actors are ripe.”
“From social engineering to AI use to data horrors, the world has seen the biggest and most sophisticated organizations and cyber programs fall into cybercrime. It's no longer about prevention. It's a matter of preparation now,” says Grifanti.
“What I want to see more in the boardroom is that the directors look under the hood and take initiatives to challenge the cybergovernance structure and decision-making process, as well as the organization's resilience and recovery protocols.”
