Strategic Leadership in a Fragmented World: At the Crossroads of Political Fragmentation, AI, and Sustainability

Location
FORUM
Bildungscampus 1, 74076 Heilbronn, Germany

Sponsors
TUM School of Management
HEC Paris

Registration Fees

• Non‑Member: $125
• SMS Member: $100

Event Overview

This extension examines how three intertwined transformations are collectively reshaping the landscape for strategic leadership. Deepening political fragmentation, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), and the growing imperative but also increasingly contested nature of sustainability each pose distinct challenges. Yet their interactions amplify complexity in ways that existing strategic frameworks struggle to accommodate. Political fragmentation is reshaping the governance landscape, with increasing political risk and democratic backsliding even in established democracies. Major financial institutions have withdrawn from climate alliances under political pressure, even as the EU expands mandatory sustainability disclosure requirements. The same corporate commitment may be mandated in one jurisdiction and penalized in another. AI is rapidly transforming how organizations operate, yet its growing energy demands raise urgent sustainability questions of its own. The scientific consensus on climate change, meanwhile, points to the need for significant organizational transformation, even as the political legitimacy of sustainability itself is under dispute in some jurisdictions. Critically, these forces do not unfold in isolation. They compound one another, creating novel strategic challenges around climate change, rising inequality, and the governance of transformative technologies. This demands that strategic leaders develop new frameworks that bridge disciplinary and institutional boundaries. This extension brings together scholars working across these domains to develop integrative perspectives that can inform both theory and practice.

This extension invites contributions that address these transformations both individually and at their intersections.

Sustainability

• How do organizations reconfigure resource allocation in response to sustainability imperatives?
• Under what conditions do sustainability commitments translate into substantive change versus symbolic action?
• How does AI-driven ESG monitoring reshape corporate sustainability commitments?

Digital Technologies & AI

• Under what conditions does AI adoption support versus undermine sustainability transitions?
• How does AI redistribute decision-making authority between leaders and algorithms?
• How do strategic leaders account for AI’s environmental costs when pursuing sustainability goals

Political Fragmentation, AI & Sustainability

• How does regulatory divergence shape firms’ AI adoption strategies, and when do firms leverage fragmented governance to circumvent accountability standards?
• How do strategic leaders navigate contradictory institutional demands when sustainability commitments are simultaneously mandated and penalized across different political contexts?
• How do firms use AI to navigate contradictory stakeholder demands around sustainability and financial performance?

Key Takeaways

• New conceptual lenses for navigating AI, sustainability, and political fragmentation
• Direct dialogue with leading Mittelstand practitioners from the Heilbronn‑Franken region
• High‑quality networking with international scholars and business leaders in an intimate setting

Agenda

Wednesday, October 14, 2026

19:00 Evening get‑together and dinner at the Insel Hotel

Morning: Digital Technologies and AI & Sustainability

09:00–09:15 Welcome from Vice President and Dean of the TUM School of Management

09:15–09:30 Welcome and opening remarks from the conference hosts

09:30-10:30 Academic keynote

10:30–11:00 Coffee break

11:00–12:00 Academic keynote

12:00–13:00 Conference lunch

Afternoon: Sustainability & Political Fragmentation

13:00–14:00 Academic keynote

14:00–15:00 Panel discussion with academics and practitioners: Digital Technologies, AI, Sustainability & Political Fragmentation

15:00–15:30 Coffee break

15:30–16:30 Roundtables with academics and practitioners

16:30–17:15 Discussion of roundtables and concluding remarks

19:00-22:00 Conference dinner at Ratskeller

Speakers

Scholars

• Prof. Thomas Zellweger (University of St. Gallen)
• Prof. Dr. Christiane Bode (Imperial College London)
• Prof. Witold Henisz (Wharton)
• Ruth Aguilera (Northeastern University)

Practitioners

• Ms. Bonita Grupp, trigema
• Mr. Timo Gessman, Schunk SE & Co KG
• Olivier Schiller (final confirmation pending), Chairman of the Board of Septodont

Hotel & Travel

We have reserved a number of rooms at reduced rates of € 113,50 incl. breakfast at Insel Hotel, Heilbronn. Please make your reservation directly at the Insel-Hotel either by email via insel@insel-hotel.de or by phone via +49 7131 6300. To receive the reduced conference rate, please mention the booking code: “Strategic Leadership”. Please make your booking until August 31, 2026.

Other hotels nearby are (no special rates available): Parkhotel Heilbronn, Premier Inn Heilbronn, and Harbr Heilbronn.

There are two major international airports available for your arrival:

Stuttgart Airport (STR) – approx. 1 hour away by train.

Frankfurt Airport (FRA) – approx. 1,5 hours away by train.

When booking your flight, we recommend considering connecting to a train or a rental car to ensure a comfortable onward journey to Heilbronn.

The most time-efficient way to travel from Heilbronn to Berlin is via train. Click here for train timetables and for booking tickets.