archiveChief Procurement Officer Insider

"You're the worst comedian I've ever seen. Get off the ship." The words bellowed across the cruise ship show lounge. Under the harsh spotlight, I watched 200 faces stare back at me with an expression that fell somewhere between disgust and contempt. This wasn't just a bad gig. This was a catastrophe I couldn't escape from....

Private Markets Are Scaling. Infrastructure Is Not. Private markets have moved from niche to mainstream, becoming a pillar of portfolio construction for families, institutions and the ultra-wealthy. Estimates now place global private markets assets in the mid‑teens to low‑20s trillions of dollars, with continued structural growth driven by private equity,...

The artificial intelligence sector has witnessed its most dramatic commercial validation in history. Two companies—OpenAI and Anthropic—have collectively generated over $20 billion in annualized revenue, achieving growth rates that eclipse even the most aggressive projections from traditional enterprise software. For C-suite executives and institutional investors, this trajectory signals not merely...

How Leaders Build Geopolitical Foresight and Drive Transformation in an Age of Permanent Crisis.  Executive Introduction  The world has entered an era where disruption is constant, interconnected, and amplified across systems. Traditional tools are no longer sufficient for leaders navigating global volatility. Foresight is becoming a core leadership discipline —...

Miami-based real estate developer Robert Balzebre has transformed his success in hospitality and property development into philanthropic engagement across education and human rights. His financial contributions and board service span from university business education to wrongful conviction appeals, from documentary filmmaking to supporting political dissidents worldwide. Through active governance roles...

To be yourself is to understand that you are enough as you are. It is to recognize that the highest form of leadership is modeling the very vulnerability and authenticity we long to see in the world. In having the courage to be yourself, you not only fulfill your own...

How a Quiet Builder Became a Cross-Industry Leader Some leaders build fast. Others build to last. Timur Yusufov falls into the second group. He doesn’t chase headlines or trend-driven growth. He focuses on real people, real needs, and real systems that work over time. His journey spans real estate, healthcare,...

From Gallup to Global Markets Sujay Thakur grew up in Gallup, New Mexico — a small town known for its wide skies and close-knit community. His early years taught him grit and persistence. As a teenager, he worked at McDonald’s, where his drive-thru line became the highest-grossing west of the...

A friend once told me: “You work with innovation, so you must have many ideas.” I loved that moment because it showed how easily innovation is misunderstood. Having many ideas is wonderful, but ideas alone are not innovation. If they were, every brainstorming session would turn companies into industry leaders....

Neville Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister leading up to World War II, has been ridiculed like few other leaders. He is an easy target because his negotiations with Adolf Hitler resulted in the Munich Agreement, what some have called appeasement, which failed to stop Germany from invading Eastern Europe. It...