Keynote plenaries

Keynote address: US election 2024: implications for global business 

With the most divisive US presidential election in generations behind us and the votes (mostly) counted, what lies ahead? What are the implications for US policy, global politics, and multinational business? What have we learned about where the world’s largest economy is headed and what is still unknown? And how can global business adapt to the new landscape? This session will focus on what we know, what do not yet know, and what it means for each of us in this turbulent, interconnected world.

David Bach has held the position of President of IMD since September 2024. He is focused on broadening and deepening IMD’s global impact through learning innovation, program excellence, and applied thought leadership. As Nestlé Professor of Strategy and Political Economy, he helps leaders navigate the myriad political challenges facing business today.

Keynote address: Impact investing for a more sustainable, inclusive world

Durreen Shahnaz, a global leader of social impact and impact investing, is the founder of Impact Investment Exchange (IIX) and IIX Foundation. Over the past three decades her mission has been to build a more inclusive, sustainable world by transforming financial markets and bringing underserved women to the forefront of capital markets.

Shahnaz’s work has helped thousands of entrepreneurs, investors, governments, and impact stakeholders around the world to play a role in sustainable development and women’s empowerment. For her work innovative finance and gender lens investing,

Shahnaz was recognized in 2020 by UN Women with a WEP award for leadership action and commitment to advancing gender equality and women’s economic empowerment. Shahnaz was recognized in 2021 by Forbes as one of the 50 women over the age of 50 changing the world. She currently serves/has served on the advisory board for UNDP, United Nations ESCAP, G20 Steering Committee for Impact Investing and was also an appointed member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council.

Keynote address: Decision making under (real) pressure

Today’s business leaders are often under pressure to make the right decisions, while also being held to increasingly high levels of scrutiny and expectations of accountability. Pierluigi Collina, recognized six times as “The World’s Best Referee”, will share key strategies for decision making under pressure, which are as relevant to business as they are to football matches.

Collina has refereed at the highest level including the 2002 World Cup Final and the 1999 Champions League Final plus countless World Cup and international matches, as well as in Serie A in his native Italy.

He is uniquely respected by the players, managers and fans where his calm authority and sense of fair play under great pressure made him the best in the world′s most popular sport. After his retirement in 2005 Collina chaired the Serie A referees from 2007 to 2010, then he moved to UEFA where he worked as Chief Refereeing Officer and Chairman of the Referees Committee until 2018. He is currently the Chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee.

An economics graduate (cum laude) from the University of Bologna, Pierluigi Collina was a financial consultant by profession (Italian League referee was not a full-time position). As well as the awards he has collected on the pitch, Collina has been honoured around the world for his achievements. These honours include the Commendatore dell’Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana bestowed upon him in 2003 and a Doctorate “Honoris Causa” in Science by the University of Hull in 2004. Outside of his football and professional life, Pierluigi Collina is an energetic champion of good causes. He was International Red Cross’ ambassador for the campaign “Children in war” in 2004, and FIFA Ambassador for the SOS Italia Children Villages. He is the author of the book “The Rules of the Game”, published in Italy in 2003 and translated in more than 10 different languages and 20 countries.

Collina explains in meticulous detail how he became an official and what it takes to be the best and stay the best. He has a simple creed as relevant to business as refereeing: work hard to be successful and be always one step forward as knowing everything about what you are going to do is crucial to take the correct decision. His presentations are inspirational and filled with anecdotes and humor. Often under the spotlight of the world′s media, Pierluigi Collina is highly professional and is used to dealing with the pressures of a live audience.

Keynote address: Leading in a polarized world

Peter Voser has been Chairman of ABB’s Board of Directors since 2015. He also served as ABB’s Chief Executive Officer from April 2019 to February 2020 and as Chief Financial Officer and Executive Committee member from 2002 to 2004.

Voser was CEO of Royal Dutch Shell from 2009 to 2013, and CFO and Executive Director of Royal Dutch Shell from 2004 to 2009. He began his career at Royal Dutch Shell in 1982, where he held several senior management and executive roles in Europe and Latin America until 2002.

Voser is a member of the board of directors of IBM Corporation (USA), and of Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited (Singapore) as well as Group Chairman of the board of directors of Temasek’s subsidiary PSA International Pte Ltd (Singapore). He is also a member of the Asia Business Council and Chairman of the Board of the St. Gallen Foundation for International Studies and of Europe Delivers, a business-led partnership working to build future-fit growth in Europe. In June 2019, he was made an honorary director of Catalyst, a non-profit organization which champions women leaders. Voser obtained his degree in business administration from the Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Switzerland. In 2011, Voser was awarded the title “Dato Seri Laila Jasa” by His Majesty the Sultan of Brunei in recognition of services to the state of Brunei. In 2021, Peter Voser was award-ed the title “Honorary Citizen of Singapore” by the Singapore Government, which is the highest form of national recognition for a non-Singaporean.

Keynote address: Journey to the top

In May 2021, Ada Tsang, 44 became the fastest woman to climb up Mount Everest with a time of 25 hours 50 minutes, beating the previous record of 39 hours 6 minutes by more than 12 hours. Climbers usually will spend several days in different camps before reaching the 29,031-foot peak to acclimatise themselves with the different altitudes. Tsang left the Everest base camp at 1:20 pm and embarked on a non-stop climb, reaching the top at 3:10 pm. the next day.

Ada achieved this in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic that had affected other teams in their attempts to climb up the world’s highest mountain.

After two previous failed attempts in 2014 and 2015 to reach the peak of Mount Everest, Tsang quit her job as a life education teacher at a secondary school in 2017 to pursue the quest to become the first Hong Kong woman to reach the top of Mount Everest. She finally achieved that goal in 2017 with full time training and having to professionally raise funds to support her expedition.

An avid athlete since her school days, Tsang only picked up climbing seriously in 2010. She had set a goal to conquer Mount Everest and she started with no experience in mountain climbing. She had to go through years of high intensity training, climbing ice and rock. She also started running long distances to increase her fitness level. Despite the setbacks from her earlier attempts, she never gave up on her goal and took lessons from the failed attempts to help her achieve her goals.

‘Aim high, so you can achieve high’, was the mantra for Hong Kong climber Ada Tsang in setting the world record. Ada started her journey with no experience in mountain climbing. She quickly learned she would have to go through years of high intensity training to complete her goal—starting at the beginning. “No matter how big your dream is, you need to break it into small pieces so you can achieve it,”

It is a story about passion, determination, and grit. Despite the adversity Ada faced throughout her journey, she never gave up, and hopes to inspire others to always be fearless, dream the impossible, and push as hard as you can until you reach your goals. She believes that all failures and difficulties are only here to make us train harder, be more focused, so we return stronger.