Managing Risk and Reputation in a Complex World

Anticipate and develop strategies to address critical beyond-market forces, from legislation and regulation to activism and the media.

Your company’s reputation takes years to build; yet it can be destroyed in a matter of minutes. Thinking ahead can make all the difference. Managing Risk and Reputation in a Complex World combines thinking with doing, providing a comprehensive set of strategic and practical skills to help you both assess your firm’s potential risks and seize new opportunities. You’ll learn invaluable tools and tactics that you can implement the moment you return to work — whether dealing with internal stakeholders, the government, media, or the public.

This program is timely, topical, and essential for anyone developing business strategy. One look at today’s business headlines will convince you. Which is why the program combines real-time cases with cutting-edge academic research and is led by Stanford GSB faculty in partnership with experts in public affairs. You will learn, discuss, and collaborate with faculty and peers who share a common goal: to elevate the importance of beyond-market forces and make them more integral to a company’s core strategy. Broaden your thinking with perspectives from Silicon Valley businesses, and discuss practical experiences with senior-level executives from multiple disciplines.

Key Benefits

Gain tools, analytical frameworks, leadership skills, and confidence to proactively manage risk and make a positive impact across your organization.

  • Evaluate and manage risk generated by policymakers and interest groups, stakeholders, and the media.
  • Analyze, integrate, and take ownership of your company’s beyond-market strategy.
  • Formulate and implement strategies to sustain your company’s interests and turn potential threats into competitive opportunities.
  • Dissect real-world cases — from Uber to EU privacy — and learn from their examples.
  • Build a strong network of peers with whom you can share ideas and experiences.

Who Should Attend?

  • Senior-level executives with at least 10 years of experience — from any size company, any industry, and any country
  • Executives from large global companies that face challenges in a variety of different institutional arenas
  • Leaders of startups or smaller organizations seeking creative ways to build competitive advantage
  • Examples of appropriate roles: senior functional leaders transitioning into general management, division-level leaders who will soon assume corporate-level positions, and leaders driving strategy in the C-suite

24 Aug 2025 – 29 Aug 2025

In-Person | Stanford, CA | US $15,000

Deadline

11 Jul 2025

Qualified candidates are admitted on a rolling, space-available basis. Early applications are encouraged.

The program fee includes tuition, private accommodations, all meals, and course materials.

Payment is due upon admission. Your space is secured upon receipt of full payment.

Awarded Upon completion

Certificate of completion

Contact

Donna Obeid
Associate Director, Programs Executive Education
Program Overview

Program Overview

Join Faculty Directors Steven Callander and Ken Shotts as they discuss the tools and skills needed to analyze, integrate, and take ownership of your firm’s beyond-market strategy.

Learn More About the Program

Explore our carefully designed curriculum, and go deeper with select course descriptions or a sample schedule.

Review all eligibility requirements, and learn about the application process.

Learn more about our past participants, and find out if the program is right for you.

Faculty Leadership

Steven Callander
The Herbert Hoover Professor of Public and Private Management and Professor of Political Economy
Ken Shotts
The David S. and Ann M. Barlow Professor of Political Economy

Associated program Topics