Best of LinkedIn: Strategy & Consulting CW 20/ 21

Over the past two weeks, Strategy & Consulting activity was defined by a clear shift from AI experimentation toward enterprise execution. The strongest signals came from agentic AI, cyber resilience, governance, board accountability, finance transformation, and alliance-led delivery models. Across the selected posts, the differentiator is no longer AI ambition, but the ability to redesign operating models, data foundations, workflows, and leadership routines around it.

Date

May 28, 2026

Strategy & Consulting

Methodology: Every two weeks we collect most relevant posts on LinkedIn for selected topics and create an overall summary only based on these posts. If you´re interested in the single posts behind, you can find them here: https://linktr.ee/thomasallgeyer. Have a great read!

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If you prefer listening, check out our podcast summarizing the most relevant insights from Strategy & Consulting CW 20/ 21:

AI Strategy and Agentic AI

Compute scarcity was framed as a strategic constraint that can shape AI ambition before companies are ready to execute
Agentic AI moved from concept to execution, with BCG’s Agent2Impact Expo positioning agents as practical tools for Corporate Finance & Strategy
Enterprise AI scaling was linked to workflow redesign, embedded trust, and operational governance rather than access to models alone
Human-in-the-loop oversight was challenged as fragile when infrastructure conditions are not tested before deployment
Building one agent per role was criticized as a way to recreate bureaucracy instead of designing dynamic operating layers
AI value creation was linked to competitive moats such as proprietary workflows, decision logic, data context, and organizational capabilities
Leaders were encouraged to use AI to pressure-test thinking rather than replace judgment or independent analysis

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Consulting Market and Partnerships

McKinsey’s AI alliances were positioned as a bridge between frontier technology and enterprise-scale execution
PwC expanded its Anthropic alliance through a multi-year investment focused on running AI in production
PwC was named a Leader in The Forrester Wave: AI Consulting Services, Q2 2026, reinforcing its positioning around engineering depth, alliances, responsible AI, and industry expertise
BCG and Anthropic linked their collaboration to the cybersecurity agenda, showing how AI partnerships are moving into resilience-critical use cases
Anthropic’s Claude agents were highlighted in major banks, while AI labs appeared to use private equity channels as enterprise distribution routes
The consulting model itself was challenged, with operator-led firms using AI capability and client trust positioned as a potential reset to professional services economics

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Operating Model and Execution

Ownership and accountability were framed as decisive factors in AI integration into operations, even when technology is available
AI governance was repeatedly connected to corporate strategy, risk mitigation, and revenue growth, shifting it from a compliance topic to a leadership agenda
Operational restructuring was defined as business reconfiguration, not cost-cutting or org chart redesign
Operating Model Effectiveness was linked to cross-functional alignment rather than optimization of single functions
ERP value was positioned as dependent on sustained leadership, localized change, and AI-ready design from day one
Transformation failure was tied to culture, leadership patterns, prioritization, and organizational complexity rather than missing ideas
Execution gaps were framed as human and organizational problems before they become technology problems

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Governance, Risk and Digital Trust

Governance was positioned as an early transformation design choice, with deferred governance questions described as compounding later failure
Digital Trust was defined as an integrated model across AI, cyber, privacy, data governance, and organizational accountability
Adaptive and semantic data governance was presented as the single point of failure for enterprise AI
Cyber resilience was linked to asset visibility, with knowing what digital assets exist framed as the foundation for protection
CISO effectiveness was connected to trust-building and security culture before a crisis occurs
Next-generation risk management was described as integrating cyber, AI, third-party risk, and resilience into a connected enterprise model
Digital assets were framed as scalable only when governance, controls, custody, settlement, and compliance are disciplined

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Board, CEO and Leadership Agenda

AI oversight was framed as a fiduciary responsibility, moving board committees closer to strategy execution
Boards and CEOs were shown as aligned on AI importance but misaligned on pace, ownership, accountability, and strategic translation
Board AI literacy was positioned as a risk issue, with boards pushing fastest in areas they understand least
CEO priorities shifted toward geopolitical risk, physical AI, M&A, resilience, and reskilling
Strategy in the field was highlighted as a CEO behavior, with customer proximity positioned as superior to boardroom-only planning
Embedding strategy into daily decisions across a 100,000-person organization was framed as the real transformation challenge
A full C-suite reset within twelve months was described as a high-conviction leadership move where disruption may outweigh continuity risk

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Finance, Deals and Value Creation

CFOs were positioned as growth and discipline leaders, with finance shifting from control function to strategic steering function
Finance AI adoption showed a scale gap, with strong prioritization but limited deployment at enterprise level
A 48-hour year-end close illustrated AI’s potential to release finance capacity for judgment, analysis, and value creation
Carve-out value was linked to early choices on cost allocation, EBITDA quality, and exit readiness
SAFE notes were framed as deferred dilution, requiring founders to model cap table consequences before stacking instruments
Tax strategy was positioned as a source of long-term value when aligned with business strategy
OECD Pillar Two relief was highlighted as a practical compliance development for 2024 central GIR filing

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Procurement, Supply Chain and Resilience

Procurement was positioned as strategic supply chain design, not a transactional buying function
AI was framed as a force that sharpens procurement expertise but does not replace judgment, relationships, and market context
Vendor lock-in and rising billable hours were flagged as risks in AI transformation programs
Volatility was defined as the operating environment, not a temporary disruption to strategy
Resilience was framed as defining what cannot break and designing the minimum viable company around those priorities
GCC consulting demand shifted toward implementation and resilience, especially in defense and energy
Reshoring data showed a gap between manufacturing investment and actual US output, pointing to execution friction in industrial strategy

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Sustainability, Mobility and Sector Themes

Circular economy progress in Germany was linked to tax reform and stacked policy levers rather than isolated initiatives
Radical materiality was positioned as a way to focus sustainability work on what creates measurable value
Fuel volatility and crack spreads were shown as strategic forces reshaping airline pricing and corporate travel
Family businesses were described as adopting AI for resilience, but with gaps in integrated transformation strategy
US growth was characterized as dependent on narrow pillars while supply shocks pressure real disposable income
Banks in the US and Europe were described as resilient, supported by capital markets performance despite scrutiny of private credit and geopolitical uncertainty

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Products, Platforms and Market Signals

BCG’s Agent2Impact Expo signaled that agentic AI is being packaged into execution-ready consulting propositions
PwC’s Anthropic expansion strengthened the market signal around production AI and alliance-led delivery
BCG’s Anthropic collaboration positioned cybersecurity as a priority enterprise AI use case
EY and SpeakUp’s AI compliance roundtable framed compliance transformation as a leadership agenda for Legal, Compliance, Risk, and executive teams
The BCG digital assets report moved the discussion from crypto enthusiasm toward governance, controls, custody, settlement, and trust
The 2026 fiCFO Summit highlighted Scaling the Intelligent Enterprise as a finance leadership topic

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