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Episode Title:🇳🇴Happy New Year? Not So Greenꪶꪖꪀᦔ on International Law🇳🇴
Heads Talk® is currently on a scheduled break, but this episode was released out of necessity. The timing, severity, and geopolitical significance of recent events made this a conversation that could not wait.
My guest, Erik Solheim, is no stranger to the Executive Podcast. A statesman, former Norwegian minister, chief negotiator, and diplomat, Erik has led peace processes, shaped global environmental policy, and worked at the highest levels of international governance. Few voices are better placed to offer clarity at this moment.
This episode is a candid  analytical debate about where the world is heading, what has changed, and what we should realistically look forward to. It examines geopolitics as it is, not as we wish it to be, and how nations, institutions, and citizens navigate an increasingly uncertain global landscape. Serious questions, serious counsel, but also clarity, perspective, and a reminder that understanding is still our first line of defence.
Topics Covered:
◽️Greenland's Strategic Importance and Arctic Question of Sovereignty, Self-Determination and Great-Power Pressure
◽️Greenland, a Systemic Stress Test. What It Reveals About the Resilience of the Global Order
◽️Cracks in the Post-1945 System, Weakening of Territorial Integrity and Non-Interference
◽️Decline of Soft Power. Why Reputational and Normative Deterrence No Longer Restrain States
◽️Disruption in US Foreign Policy, Reshaping of Global Norms Through Power Projection
◽️Psychological Signalling in Geopolitics, How Fear, Symbolism and Messaging Shape Outcomes
◽️International Law, Borders and Sovereignty as Foundations of Global Stability
◽️Venezuela as a Test Case for Intervention, Resources and Regional Power Dynamics
◽️Multipolar Reality as the US, China, Russia and India Recalibrate Influence
◽️Arctic Dimension, Russia’s Strategic Interests in a Warming, Contested Region
◽️US Strategy in Latin America and China’s Expanding Influence Across the Global South
◽️LATAM’s Reassessment of External Engagement in a Shifting Global Landscape
◽️Institutional Hollowing and Whether NATO, the UN and Others Still Constrain Power
◽️Europe at a Strategic Crossroads. Challenge of Autonomy, Confidence and Global Relevance
◽️Future of the World Order and Whether the Erosion of the Current System Is a Risk, a Reset, Welcomed or an Inevitable Evolution
Erik's recent post discussed here:- 
NB: Audio quality varies slightly: recorded from different locations across the globe. Given the urgency, it was a conversation worth having now.
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Episode Title: 🇬🇧Economics of Advice - The Changing Role of Management Consultants in the Professional Services Industry🇬🇧
🌎PLEASE NOTE HEADS TALK HAS TAKEN A BREAK AND WILL BE BACK EARLY IN THE NEW YEAR. 
This special end-of-year episode of Heads Talk® I am joined by three gentlemen I’ve known for decades, former colleagues, industry peers, and each a respected voice in the evolution of consulting. In the spirit of the season, you might even say I’ve gathered three wise men to help us navigate where professional services go next in the age of AI.
Craig Walker, Chris Gant, Eddie Short: Between them, they’ve led major global transformations, shaped technology strategy in the Big 4 (KPMG, EY, Deloitte), and held C-suite, board and leadership roles across organisations such as Shell, O2, Capgemini, Salesforce, and more. Now, they’ve come together to build a new kind of consulting firm: lean, senior-led, and AI-era ready:- Veles Consulting.
This conversation isn’t about automation or incremental efficiency. It’s about reinvention - the new economics of advice, the erosion and rebuilding of trust, and whether agile boutiques are truly challenging the Big Firm model… or simply rewriting the rules with smarter tools.
As one of my final episodes of 2025, with Christmas around the corner, it felt only fitting to close the year in conversation with three people I’ve known, respected, and collaborated with for years. It’s a sharp, lively, insider discussion about what consulting was, what it is, and what it must become in the age of agentic AI.
Stay tuned. This one lands with impact!!
Topics Covered:
◽️ Is the Traditional Consulting Model Broken? What Changed from the 80s, 90s, 2000s?
◽️ Why Trust Is the Defining Issue of AI Adoption and Has Consulting Lost It?
◽️ Reinvention vs Redefinition: What AI Truly Means for Professional Services Today
◽️ Eight C-Suite Commandments for AI-Powered Consulting
◽️ How AI Changes the Economics of Consulting including Margins, Fee Models, Staffing and Scope
◽️ Rise of Senior-Led Boutiques: Myth or Material Shift?
◽️ Case Studies Where Boutiques Have Outperformed Big Four Incumbents
◽️ Should Global Banks, Energy Majors and Others Trust Boutiques with Critical Systems?
◽️ Agentic AI and Accountability: Who Owns the Chain of Risk?
◽️ Continuity and Scalability When the Delivery Model Relies on Senior Operators
◽️ What Does a Consulting Firm Become When AI Reasons, Designs and Decides for Clients?
So download⏳grab a cup of Bird & Blend Tea Co. - Mulled Cider Tea ☕️& have a listen🛋
Episode Sponsor
◽️Accxia
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Contact the Veles Consulting Team HERE
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Episode Title: 🇨🇱As Intelligence Anchors into Infrastructure the Real Power of Cloud and AI Emerges🇨🇱
As we close this year’s BRICS & Geopolitics Series on Heads Talk®, I’m delighted to introduce a conversation with a guest who is right at the centre of one of the most urgent themes of recent months: keeping a true ‘Human in the Loop’ as technology accelerates around us.
It was an incredibly fluid and engaging exchange, and I encourage you to listen closely to the insights he shared.
Felipe Schwartzmann is the Senior Vice President for LATAM and the Caribbean at Genesys, where he has led the region to standout performance and earned recognition as the company’s Global Sales Leader of the Year.
With more than two decades of experience, Felipe brings a rare blend of commercial acuity, technological depth, and a real commitment to customer-centred innovation. Earlier in his career, he held senior commercial and sales leadership roles across the region, building sophisticated go-to-market models, launching cloud CX platforms, and steering large-scale enterprise transformations.
Topics Covered:
◽️ The evolution of cloud as the new intelligence layer of business
◽️ Agentic AI and the shift toward autonomous, context-aware decision systems
◽️ LATAM’s accelerated cloud and AI adoption and its distinct innovation patterns
◽️ Financial-sector cloud transformation and the new foundations of digital trust
◽️ Data localisation, AI governance and the geopolitics of distributed cloud
◽️ BRICS-aligned cloud and AI ecosystems and the race for technological independence
◽️ AI as the new electricity: everywhere and nowhere at the same time
◽️ Trust, explainability and human oversight as core pillars of enterprise AI
◽️ The future of cloud and AI in 2035 and the co-evolution of humans and digital agents
So download⏳grab a cup of Bird & Blend Tea Co. - Peppy Mint Tea ☕️& have a listen🛋
Episode Sponsored by
◽️Accxia - 𝔼𝕦𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕖'𝕤 𝕃𝕒𝕣𝕘𝕖𝕤𝕥 ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕧𝕒𝕥𝕖 ℂ𝕝𝕠𝕦𝕕 𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝔸𝕥𝕝𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕒𝕟
ABOUT THE HOST
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Episode Title: 🇧🇷Business Diplomacy and the Trade Diplomat Mindset🇮🇳🇮🇩
Another engaging episode in the BRICS & Geopolitics Series on Heads Talk®. This week, we take a look into the Brazil/India/Indonesia axis, exploring how trade corridors across the Global South are accelerating, recalibrating influence and quietly reshaping the global economic order. 
It is a conversation about shifting sands, strategic alignments & the emerging power of South-South cooperation.
We look at the evolving architecture of BRICS, the role of the new entrants and how business diplomacy is becoming a central instrument of economic statecraft. We also touch on digital payment systems such as Brazil’s PIX and India’s UPI, and what these innovations signal about where financial leadership may be heading.
Christiano Branco joins me for this discussion. He is a senior international trade and investment specialist, currently serving as Commercial Director at both the Indo-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce and the Indonesia-Brazil Chamber. His work spans key sectors and major markets, helping businesses navigate market entry, investment flows and bilateral partnerships. He has previously served at the Consulate General of India in São Paulo and is the founder of ENKEI Consultancy, advising organisations on Brazilian market strategy. Christiano’s experience extends across major multilateral forums including BRICS, the G20 and the Global Agribusiness Forum.
Topics Covered:
◽️ Brazil’s evolving role in the new Global South growth corridor
◽️ Business diplomacy as a catalyst for trust, trade, and strategic influence
◽️ The rising importance of the Brazil-India economic axis
◽️ Innovation-led South–South trade in fintech, agri-tech, and digital services
◽️ The future of BRICS trade architecture and financial independence
◽️ Southeast Asia’s growing influence in Latin America - Asia cooperation
◽️ Supply-chain resilience and risk management across emerging markets
◽️ Sustainability as an economic differentiator for the Global South
◽️ The trajectory and challenges of next-generation Global South alliances
So download⏳grab a cup of Bird & Blend Tea Co. - Peppy Mint Tea ☕️& have a listen🛋
Episode Sponsored by
◽️Accxia - 𝔼𝕦𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕖'𝕤 𝕃𝕒𝕣𝕘𝕖𝕤𝕥 ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕧𝕒𝕥𝕖 ℂ𝕝𝕠𝕦𝕕 𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝔸𝕥𝕝𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕒𝕟
ABOUT THE HOST
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Episode Title:🇨🇭New Capital Frontier & The Forces Reshaping Regional Finance🇨🇭 
Brought to you live from Money20/20 Riyadh, this  Heads Talk® episode features Guest Host Sanjiv Purushotham, CEO of Bridge Solutions, in conversation with Stela Willemstein, Group Risk Control at UBS.
They sit down for a dynamic discussion on the Middle East’s rapidly evolving financial landscape, moving from participant to global powerhouse. And explore Saudi Arabia’s transformation in technology, culture, and industry, the rise of next-generation fintech, and reforms reshaping banking, compliance, and risk. From combating illicit money flows to opportunities in open banking, AI-driven personalisation, and RegTech, this conversation highlights a financial ecosystem in motion and increasingly central to the world’s capital future.
Stela brings deep expertise in digital initiatives, credit-risk policy, and global wealth-management governance, with senior roles at UBS, Credit Suisse, and over a decade at ING across Europe and the US. She blends technical rigor with behavioural insight and a focus on positive impact, representing a new generation of risk leaders who combine innovation, integrity, and cross-border experience.
Topics Covered:
◽️Middle East’s rise as a global financial hub and impact on capital flows
◽️Saudi Arabia’s transformation in tech, fintech, and financial infrastructure
◽️Strengthening AML frameworks and managing illicit money movement
◽️Closing Infrastructure Gaps to Scale Open Banking and Interoperable Financial Services
◽️Wealth management evolution for Millennial and Gen Z investors
◽️Regional Fintech Innovation, Expansion & Cross-Border Opportunities With Africa
◽️AI-driven personalisation and human-in-the-loop decision models
◽️RegTech, cybersecurity, and digital risk management priorities
◽️Key insights from Money 2020 Riyadh and regional fintech strategy
So download⏳grab a cup of Bird & Blend Tea Co. - Mocha Chai Tea ☕️& have a listen🛋
Episode Sponsored by
◽️Accxia - 𝔼𝕦𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕖'𝕤 𝕃𝕒𝕣𝕘𝕖𝕤𝕥 ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕧𝕒𝕥𝕖 ℂ𝕝𝕠𝕦𝕕 𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝔸𝕥𝕝𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕒𝕟
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#AFlyOnTheBoardroomWall #HeadsTalkPodcast
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