Effective board oversight of geostrategic risk 

In today’s dynamic business landscape, boards face unprecedented challenges in overseeing geostrategic risks. This webcast provides insights into how directors can enhance their knowledge to effectively address these complexities.

The EY Center for Board Matters presented this webcast on Thursday, May 22, 2025, at 3:00 p.m. ET as part of its in Better Questions for Boards, webcast series, which is designed to provide directors with insights and questions to consider as they engage with management on a variety of complex boardroom issues.

Over the past five years, many boards have significantly increased their oversight activity related to geostrategic risk, and the proportion of boards participating in important political risk oversight activities has grown.

This webcast addresses the current political and economic landscape, and panelists talk about how leading boards are preparing to meet the geostrategic challenges of today and tomorrow. The agenda provides board members with practical advice on enhancing director skills and knowledge, embedding geostrategy into board activities, and supporting management in identifying and mitigating global and political risks.

Panelists:

• Lydia Boussour, EY-Parthenon Senior Economist, Ernst & Young LLP
• Ambassador Antonio Garza, Board Member, Canadian Pacific Kansas City and Greenbrier Companies
• Oliver Jones, EY-Parthenon Global Strategy and Transactions Markets, Sustainability and Geostrategy Leader
• Mark Weinberger, Board Member, Johnson & Johnson, JPMorgan Chase & Co., MetLife Inc. and Saudi Aramco

Key takeaways

• Geopolitical and economic uncertainty remains high, requiring business leaders to adapt to a ‘new normal’ of supply-side dynamics, inflation risks, talent scarcity, high rates, and geopolitical developments that requires agility and adaptability.
• Three structural trends define today’s geostrategic landscape: the shift from elections to policymaking, economic sovereignty and competition, and intensifying geopolitical rivalries.
• Boards should guide companies to prepare for a broad range of outcomes, accounting for trade, fiscal policy, tax, and immigration shifts. Balancing upside and downside scenarios equips businesses to manage risks and seize opportunities.
• Boards can help management integrate geopolitical risk into decision-making by overseeing four key management activities: monitoring for risks, assessing impacts, connecting risks, and embedding these insights into strategy and operations.
• Boards play a crucial role in focusing companies on long-term trends over short-term headlines, and overseeing how they avoid reactive decisions that could harm future readiness, such as excessive workforce cuts during downturns.
• With support from their boards, companies must engage proactively with regulators, track shifting global policies, and leverage industry groups to navigate external uncertainties and protect their business models.
• Decisions on technology, third-party risk, and supply chains are critical. Boards should make certain that management is appropriately assessing risks, securing partnerships, and confirming that supply chains are resilient.

What we heard from the audience

• During the webcast, one-third of viewers (33%) noted tariffs as their top concern for the year ahead, while another 20% identified inflation as their primary concern.
• A majority (71%) of those responding to polling say that the frequency their board discussions around geostrategy has increased or significantly increased in the last year.