INSEAD at ChangeNOW 2026

INSEAD returns to the ChangeNOW Summit as academic partner for the eighth consecutive year. 

Led by the Hoffmann Institute the theme of the 2026 Impact Entrepreneurship Forum will focus on “Future-fit Impact in the Post-Multilateral Era.” This timely theme reflects how impact entrepreneurship is being reshaped by shifts in funding dynamics and geopolitics which have exposed the limits of traditional top-down, siloed, and aid-driven approaches. 

This 2026 edition will underscore the need for new ways of organising, governing, and financing impact entrepreneurship, and how actors in this sector can strengthen local decision-making, support the rebuilding of global cooperation, and design anticipatory systems in a period marked by geopolitical uncertainty, social and ecological fragility. 

In addition to the forum, INSEAD is partnering with the INSEAD Centre for Corporate Governance and Chapter Zero on the Board For Change Programme, contributing to conversations on how to encourage board members to embed sustainability into corporate strategy. 

March 24, 2-3pm, Online 

Session 1: Post-multilateral Global Order: The Architecture of Collective Problem-solving

How is collective problem-solving evolving in a post-multilateral global order, and what does this means for impact entrepreneurs, organisations, and cross-sector coalitions? As traditional multilateral frameworks face persistent challenges, there is an urgency in understanding how new configurations of cooperation can deliver accountable, inclusive, and sustained social innovation.  

This online session will look into how impact entrepreneurs interpret and respond to changing dynamics in global cooperation, as well as how traditional multilateral frameworks are being undermined by the current economic crisis, inflation, technological disruption, and governance erosion. Speakers will share insights into what this means for social enterprises, and what tools are available for anticipatory leadership. 

Speakers

Session 2: “Strategy as a Vector of Search”

In an increasingly fragmented geopolitical landscape, traditional business plans are no longer sufficient. According to Andrew Shipilov, Professor of Strategy and the John H. Loudon Chair of International Management at INSEAD, strategy today is best understood as a dynamic process of search: balancing the resources an organization possesses with the demands and constraints of the global context.

Andrew Shipilov will frame strategy as a process of environmental scanning, analysis and innovation, through which organizations—across for-profit and non-profit contexts—seek to reshape their external environment despite persistent resource constraints.

Focusing on AI, he will examine how organizations can identify and manage risks, bridge resource gaps through internal development, efficiency, partnerships, or mergers, and build competitive advantage by continuously adapting their strategic search to evolving conditions.

Speakers

Register here for the virtual gathering

Future-fit Impact in the Post-Multilateral Era, ChangeNOW Summit, Grand Palais, April 1, 3-6pm

Welcome Remarks

Session 1: From Net Zero to New Growth: Turning Sustainability Into an Innovation Engine? 

As sustainability evolves from aspirational pledge to strategic and operational imperatives, recent research shows that the companies leading this shift are those that treat sustainability not as a constraint but as a driver of business-model innovation and we will explore how organizations can turn climate ambition into new business models and revenue streams. .   
 
Drawing on empirical studies of firms such as Enel, Holcim,  Suzano, among others, the opening address by Senior Affiliate Professor of Strategy at INSEAD and co-author of this research Felipe Monteiro will highlight five innovation practices that distinguish sustainability leaders: reframing sustainability as a source of strategic growth, partnering with mission-aligned lead users, building new cross-sector partnerships, working backward from long-term futures, and orchestrating multi-stakeholder coalitions to tackle challenges that exceed the reach of any single organization. 
 

Speaker

Session 2: Coalitions and Ecosystem Orchestration: Then, Now, Tomorrow

This panel opens with a definition of strategic partnerships in general and for social impact, examining how impact ventures create value propositions and operate through viable financial models. It explores how entrepreneurial ecosystems can compensate for the declining capacities of multilateral institutions by building effective bridges across organizations, sectors, and regions.

The discussion will address best practices and emerging trends in impact entrepreneurship ecosystems, including how shifts in multilateralism are reshaping their structure and functioning. Panelists will examine the value such ecosystems create for their users, the nature of competition between ecosystems, and the financial modus operandi that sustain them.

Central questions include who orchestrates these ecosystems, how participating organizations are connected, and what mechanisms hold them together over time. 

Speakers

Session 3: Foresight and Anticipatory Leadership for Social Innovation

This panel focuses on concrete tools and methodologies that help impact entrepreneurs make sense of complexity and design resilient ventures in a fragmented global landscape. Drawing on strategic foresight, anticipatory leadership, and risks analysis, speakers will explore how these methods can be applied to strategy and governance choices. Through real-world examples from OECD, the session will demonstrate how foresight can support better decision-making, reduce risk, and enable impact-driven businesses to adapt and scale amid geopolitical uncertainty and systemic change. 

Speakers

Celebratory networking reception

5pm-6:30pm Grand Palais

This year we celebrate the 20 anniversary of the INSEAD Social Entrepreneurship Programme, now called the Hans Wahl Impact Entrepreneurship Programme. We warmly welcome all members of the INSEAD community, including ISEP/HWIEP graduates, alumni, current participants, and other registered guests to join us for this special occasion. This is a private networking reception inside the Grand Palais. 

During the event, you will also hear short remarks from our Programme Director and alumni, sharing reflections, insights, and experiences from the past two decades of the programme.