Best of LinkedIn: Strategy & Consulting CW 08/ 09

Across the last two weeks, the storyline is clear: enterprise leaders are moving from AI experimentation to scaled execution, with governance, operating models, and capability building becoming the real bottlenecks. At the same time, resilience themes intensified, spanning geopolitics, supply chains, taxation, and defense, pushing strategy teams to connect long-term positioning with near-term decisions.

Date

February 18, 2026

Strategy & Consulting

Thomas Allgeyer

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 08/ 09:

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Consulting Craft and Talent

Human skills were repeatedly positioned as a differentiator as AI reshapes the consulting toolkit, with a warning against over-reliance on AI that dilutes original thinking
Multi-generational teaming was framed as a performance advantage, combining experience with fresh perspectives
Empathy and genuine connection were positioned as practical leadership capabilities that strengthen customer loyalty and long-term value

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Operating Model and Execution

Ownership and accountability were framed as the 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
ERM was described as evolving into an enterprise operating model, integrating risk across business priorities rather than treating it as a separate control function
Enterprise Architecture was positioned as an enterprise-level decision discipline, prioritizing choices for the whole organization rather than optimizing individual units
Outcome-based pricing was highlighted as underused in consulting, despite its potential to align incentives and sharpen value focus for both providers and buyers
Leadership AI literacy was framed as a prerequisite for credible adoption decisions and organizational scaling
Several posts reinforced that execution gaps are typically rooted in prioritization and organizational complexity, not in missing ideas

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Macro, Resilience, and Sector Shifts

“Resilience” emerged as the dominant leadership frame, including via reflections tied to the Munich Security Conference and the broadening definition of defense beyond purely military topics
Europe’s geopolitical role was positioned as a direct driver of corporate strategy and executive decision-making
Workforce mobility, upskilling, and productivity were stressed as strategic imperatives in the UK context, with skills training also linked to AI-driven productivity potential
Supply chains were framed as evolving through 2026 under persistent geopolitical and economic risk, with disruption readiness becoming a core strategy requirement
Sustainability was repeatedly positioned as requiring integration into everyday decisions and business strategy, enabled through collaboration
The food industry was described as facing a large-scale structural shift that will require strategic collaboration and innovation
Germany’s competitiveness narrative emphasized high-tech innovation and adaptive leadership as strategic necessities
A PwC Germany round table in Nuremberg discussed how SMEs and startups can enter the defense sector, reflecting rising interest in defense-adjacent growth paths

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Partnerships and Ecosystem Moves

BCG announced a strategic partnership with ElevenLabs to bring human-centered, agentic voice capabilities into customer experience, aiming to improve engagement, service efficiency, and personalization
BCG and OpenAI expanded their partnership (via the Frontier Alliance) to help organizations accelerate enterprise-scale AI transformations and move beyond experimentation toward scaled impact
AI transformation was repeatedly framed as an ecosystem play, requiring orchestration across technology, operations, and partners to sustain outcomes

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New Products, Tools, and Offers

A new AI tool was presented to diagnose and improve Finance functions, positioned as a practical lever to assess performance gaps and drive targeted improvements
PwC highlighted FRTR AI to improve spreadsheet reasoning accuracy and efficiency in enterprise workflows
PwC also introduced an AI agent designed to analyze complex enterprise spreadsheets to support faster, higher-quality decision-making
Deloitte promoted an Enterprise AI Navigator to integrate AI strategy across the enterprise and translate ambition into measurable value
ERP was positioned as a major integration point for AI, with risk management improvements depending less on tooling and more on leadership alignment and cross-functional collaboration
Multiple posts stressed that “AI-first” framing is often counterproductive, with better outcomes coming from disciplined problem definition and fit-for-purpose AI application
Governance was emphasized as an accelerator rather than a blocker, enabling faster scaling by reducing risk, ambiguity, and rework
Portfolio discipline appeared as a recurring management pattern, including for AI initiatives and for commercial portfolios in sectors like FMCG

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Financial Services, Payments, and Risk

Banks were urged to address climate risks proactively to avoid penalties and protect value
Banking transformation was positioned as requiring fundamental change, not cosmetic digital enhancements, to materially improve customer outcomes
Swiss financial services were portrayed as reshaping through M&A, partnerships, and digital innovation
Payment preference shifts were flagged as a direct challenge to traditional professional services business models, requiring commercial and delivery model adaptation
Banking risk management was framed as expanding with AI adoption, requiring governance and control frameworks across multiple risk categories
The end of the original BEPS Pillar One was noted as a meaningful development in digital taxation discussions
A 2026 US GDP growth projection (2.4%) was shared alongside uncertainty drivers, reinforcing the need for risk-aware planning

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Cross-cutting Strategy Signals

The software stock sell-off was interpreted as reflecting deeper concerns about AI narratives, growth durability, and business model resilience
CSOs were framed as needing to lead corporate reinvention as AI becomes a board-level strategic priority
Scaling agentic AI was positioned as an executive responsibility, with impact depending on coordinated leadership decisions rather than isolated pilots

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