International Relations Expert, CEO of TD International, Former Diplomat
Jay Truesdale is an exceptional keynote speaker with deep expertise in geopolitical strategy, market intelligence, and risk management. As CEO of TD International and former leader at Veracity Worldwide and McKinsey & Company, he brings a global perspective on business strategy. With a career in the U.S. Foreign Service, including diplomatic postings in Pakistan, Russia, Ukraine, and Hungary, and ongoing service as a U.S. Navy reserve Foreign Area Officer, Jay offers unique insights into the impact of geopolitics on business and the intersection of politics and global commerce. His experience makes him a highly valuable speaker for industry, investor, and policy events.
Geopolitics and Global Trade: What Can Be Done Today?
Leading Global Companies Through Geopolitical Shifts
From London to New York, Tokyo to Berlin, and Riyadh to São Paulo, boards are grappling with geopolitical risks and themes. Yet most don’t feel equipped to assess and incorporate the implications of these risks into their strategic decision making. With two decades of experience as a management consultant and risk advisor at leading international firms, Jay has supported major investors, top global asset managers, Fortune 500 companies, and large public sector institutions grapple with how best to respond to these risks. As the world becomes increasingly unstable and uncertain, preparing for disruptive geopolitical events will be more important than ever.
We are witnessing an increasingly antagonistic great power rivalry, which—unlike the later stages of the Cold War—has been a source of structural instability at the global level. The end of the US’ unipolar moment was not the result of a single factor, rather it was the combination of several powerful and intransigent forces which allowed for ambitious states to challenge American hegemony; among these are social fragmentation, technology revolutions, and the weakening of Western security architecture. The future of these trends and their impact the international system will have critical implications for everyone—states, businesses, and people.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shocked the world in 2022, but longtime observers of Putin’s regime understood it was the culmination of a long campaign to reassert Russia’s regional influence and reestablish the nation as a global hegemon. With years of experience as a US diplomat in Eastern Europe, Jay is well placed to navigate leaders through this important geopolitical development and its implications for global politics and international business.
The international community has given itself lofty goals: decarbonize quickly, invest in green technologies, and continue developing transformative technologies. These pursuits all require supplies of a select number of elements found in limited geographies. From the deserts of Arizona to the jungles of the Congo, political and business leaders are racing to secure supplies of critical minerals. The geopolitical bloc that ensures the security of its supply chains with have an important advantage in the next century, with significant implications for economic growth and international security.
Jay Truesdale is the CEO at TD International, a top global advisor on geopolitical strategy, market intelligence, and risk compliance, based in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining TDI, he served as CEO of Veracity Worldwide and previously was a leader at McKinsey & Company on strategy and risk management topics spanning five continents and multiple industries. As a career Foreign Service Officer, he had tours as Chief of Staff at the US Embassy in Pakistan and as Special Assistant to two Deputy Secretaries of State, with additional diplomatic postings in Russia, Ukraine, Hungary, and at the US Mission to the OSCE. Jay continues to serve as a US Navy reserve Foreign Area Officer specialized in Europe and Africa. He recently has been a keynote speaker at major industry, investor, and policy conferences and events, and has served as a moderator on panels addressing corporate risk and the impact of geopolitics on business strategy. He is a former Fulbright Scholar, Boren Fellow, and Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar, and he holds degrees from Stanford, Harvard, and the Fletcher School at Tufts.
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