Whether it was someone managing an oil tanker fleet or working in biosciences, we all wrestled with the same core questions — how do you make sound decisions?
With a background in economics, Robert Blotevogel began his professional journey during the global financial crisis. “I started my career in private banking just as the global financial crisis hit,” he recalls. “It was a turbulent time to enter the banking industry.”
After spending a decade at the International Monetary Fund in roles such as Resident Representative to Tunisia, today Robert serves as Advisor to the Head of Economic Risk Analysis at the European Stability Mechanism — a role made complex by its reliance on influence rather than formal authority. “I spend a lot of time persuading, influencing, building consensus — trying to understand the concerns of different people and teams,” he says. “It can feel like herding cats; something that’s quite difficult, but not altogether impossible.”
Given the high-stakes nature of his current role and the complexity of today’s economic landscape, the Strategic Decision Making for Leaders programme proved to be a timely and valuable investment.
Learning to Navigate Diversity and Decision-Making
Robert’s primary expectation going into the programme was to improve his effectiveness in group settings, particularly in navigating diversity of opinion and managing conflict.
He also hoped for an experience that would broaden his worldview, an expectation which INSEAD’s fully delivered on. “It was fascinating to meet people whose day-to-day work has absolutely nothing to do with mine — and yet, we shared similar challenges,” Robert reflects. “Whether it was someone managing an oil tanker fleet, working in biosciences, or running a garment production operation in Sri Lanka, we all wrestled with the same core questions — How do you gather unbiased information? How do you analyse it properly? How do you communicate it to your team, and how do you make sound decisions based on it?"
One of the most rewarding aspects of the programme, Robert notes, was its hands-on, applied nature. “We didn’t just learn about cognitive biases or decision-making pitfalls in theory — we experienced them in simulations,” he says. “We’d be split into groups, given different sets of instructions or framing, and then we’d compare outcomes. You could actually see the biases at play. It was eye-opening.”
Another standout element was the programme’s integration of artificial intelligence. While Robert was already familiar with the basics, exploring AI’s role in decision-making added a fresh perspective. From generating early hypotheses to simulating dissent, he saw real potential in AI’s ability to strengthen outcomes. “You can ask an AI provide the critical feedback that’s often necessary, but hard for a human to voice without creating tensions in the group,” he explains.
The programme simulations really made the ideas stick. I could’ve read about these concepts in abstract, or skimmed a case study or two, but the fact that we did it ourselves — that made all the difference.
Bringing Insights Back to the Workplace
When Robert returned to his role, he applied insights from the programme to a large-scale recruitment process. “One key takeaway from the course was the value of involving people with diverse backgrounds early in the decision-making process,” he explains. “Bringing in different perspectives at the outset can help guard against groupthink and unspoken assumptions. This approach makes decisions more robust in the long run.”
He ensured that the selection panel included individuals from areas outside of economics. This diverse group was tasked with asking questions that challenged the candidates in ways economists typically wouldn’t. “It assessed the candidates’ ability to communicate complex ideas in layman's terms — a crucial skill for the role that we might not have evaluated otherwise,” he says. “This was a direct result of what I learned during the training.”
Additionally, he incorporated these approaches to rethink a major institutional project to revamp the process used to assess economic risks. “We’re now integrating AI to critique our internal view on economic risks,” he shares. “We’ll ask the AI to analyse our past assessments, point out weaknesses, and provide feedback ahead of our next meeting. This feedback loop will make the process more dynamic, shortening the time between expressing opinions and receiving constructive feedback,” Robert shared, believing that this will fundamentally change the way the project teams operates and adapts to future challenges.
Enjoy the immersion — you’ll be taught by world-class professors, and the curriculum has been refined over time to perfection. It’s well-suited for people who regularly interact with groups and have to make decisions in those settings.
Reflecting on the programme, Robert stressed the importance of joining the programme with an open mind and embracing the programme's practical and intense examples. “It can sometimes be a bit painful, especially when you realise where you’ve gone wrong in the past, but it’s all part of the learning process,” he shares. “My advice is to embrace it. After a few days, or even a couple of weeks, you’ll find that what you’ve learned will truly sink in.”
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