Alumni

Spaces for Creativity

What role does workspace design really play in creativity?

Unconventionally designed offices with colourful walls, beanbags and playful décor are often assumed to spark creativity. But does unconventionality always help? Our research suggests otherwise. Under certain conditions, these environments may actually hinder creative thinking.

Professor Manuel Sosa shares insights from his latest research on how workspace design shapes creativity. Drawing on four experiments involving 1,133 participants, he will examine the causal effects of unconventional spaces on individuals’ divergent thinking, the ability to generate a wide range of distinct ideas.

In conversation with Rory Bett EMBA'26Jan and Managing Principal at Eight Inc., they will discuss the managerial implications of these findings, offering practical insights on what senior executives should consider when shaping work environments to drive creativity in their teams and organisations.

The world has changed dramatically in just the past few years—and so has the game of negotiation. 

COVID-19, Zoom, political polarisation, the online economy, increasing economic globalization, and greater workplace diversity—all have transformed the who, what, where, and how of negotiation. Today, traditional negotiating tactics, while still effective, need to be tailored to vastly different situations and circumstances. 

Negotiation: The Game Has Changed outlines how to negotiate successfully today by adapting proven negotiation principles and strategies to the challenging new contexts you face—from negotiating across cultural and political differences to trying to reach an agreement over Zoom or during a supply chain crisis.

How do you build circularity into a product never designed for it—while strengthening your business and its strategic autonomy? 

In this one-hour interview, INSEAD Professors Karel Cool and Atalay Atasu speak with François Clément-Grandcourt, General Manager of BIC’s Lighter Division, about the strategic transformation of one of BIC’s most iconic businesses. 

The conversation examines how BIC has used circularity to reconfigure its value chain, unlock new revenue pools, and reduce structural dependence on global suppliers—turning sustainability constraints into levers for resilience, control, and long-term performance. A concrete case of strategy execution at scale, this session will resonate with alumni interested in competitive strategy, operations, and the geopolitics of supply chains.

Panelists:

• François Clément-Grancourt (EMBA’09D), Member of the BIC Group Executive Committee, General Manager BIC’s Lighter Division
• Atalay Atasu, Professor of Technologies and Operations Management, Academic Director, INSEAD Sustainable Business Initiative
• Karel Cool, Professor of Strategic Management, the BP Chaired Professor of European Competitiveness, INSEAD