Are we ready for 2030?

How about 2080?

The Summit offers hands-on workshops, keynotes by luminaries in business and business anthropology, and discussions about what we want tomorrow to look like.

Bring your ideas, concerns and interests about these and more ...

Digitization    Privacy    Supply chain    Technology   

Mobility    Taxation      Marketing       Innovation

... and come away with new knowledge, new tools and new ways to prepare for a sustainable future.

Our Keynote Speakers

Following the welcoming ceremonies, the summit will open with two thought-provoking and engaging contributions from our keynote speakers Joana Breidenbach and Carlo Colpo, moderated in a conversational manner by Claus-Bernhard Pakleppa.

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The keynote conversation will focus on how businesses face challenges, at different scales, from the small and local, to the big and global and explore the contributions that anthropology can make to support that process. 

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Joana Breidenbach, is a trained Sociocultural Anthropologist and founder of Betterplace, one of the largest crowdfunding companies in Europe, specifically focused on Crowdfunding for Sustainability Projects. She is also the founder of Das Dach, a co-working company, centred around creating innovative shared working spaces. Joanna is a published author and her latest book is titled “New Work needs Inner Work”. Breidenbach has also spoken at several international conferences, including TED, on change management and innovation.

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Carlo Colpo, is a Global Manager in charge of Brand Communication for Lavazza, currently in the process of successfully upscaling Lavazza’s global positioning. Lavazza is a major player in the Coffee Industry on the European and world stage. Colpo spent many years working in Marketing and Communication across various industries, including the Automotive industry for the Jeep brand.

On the surface, the two speakers may appear to represent different business practices and goals - start-up model and traditional business model - with educational backgrounds in the different fields of anthropology and business. However, at the core, both are engaged in very similar practices on a day-to-day basis.

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The speakers will both engage in a dialogue with the intention of highlighting the benefits of Doing Business with Anthropology! moderated by Claus-Bernhard Pakleppa, socio-cultural anthropologist, management consultant, and founder of the consulting company P4D (partnership for development).

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SESSIONS

The summit starts with a broad view examining models that are being used in business to prepare future outcomes, including  exploration of mega-trends and cultural drivers and shifts, followed by a session on the role of taxation in shaping business decisions.

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The next session sharpens our perspectives, one looking at the extent of human centricity in business models that allow needs of the planet to be overlooked. Our networking event aims to build bridges and live inclusivity.

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The Summit concludes with two sessions that focus on immediate fields that call for business anthropologists’ attention: understanding shifts in complex behaviors within organizations; and identifying ways to make the contributions of the discipline recognizable for businesses in different cultures and countries.

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Sessions will begin at 16:00 and 18:00 Central European Time. For an inexhaustive look at different time zones, head over to our Program tab or scroll down to the Program near the bottom of this page 

Making Sense of the Future: How Anthropologists "See" It
Tuesday, 16:00 - 17:30 CEST

We will explain how anthropology can add cultural richness to the field of foresight and future studies and allow for a more comprehensive understanding of how micro and meso phenomena and macro forces interact and may play out.

Through a “mobile” approach to sensemaking and knowledge, with examples from science fiction, COVID-19, and technology, we will show how engaging in intentional and strategic observation to challenge predominant assumptions, especially from big data, can illuminate different future(s) realities.  

We will discuss various perspectives, frameworks, and methodologies currently used in commercial, design, and anthropological environments.  We will demonstrate how to sense anomalies and weak signals, trace them, and compare them with past and present patterned behavior to gain understanding about shifts in practice and meaning to both explain them and anticipate their future paths.

Session Contributors:

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Lucia Laurent-Neva, Semiotician, Anthropologist and Cultural Strategist, Visual Signo, UK

Carsten Claus, Business and Future Anthropologist, OBERKORN, Hamburg, Germany

Dominique Desjeux, Anthropologist, Professor (Emeritus) at the Sorbonne (University of Paris), and International Consultant for Daiz and Co, Paris, France

Julia Gluesing, Anthropologist, Research Professor at Wayne State University, President Cultural Connections, Inc., Detroit, Michigan  USA

Allen Batteau, Anthropologist, Professor (Emeritus), Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan USA

Session contacts: Carsten Claus and Lucia Laurent-Neva

Tax Culture in Business
Tuesday, 18:00 - 19:30 CEST

We will explain how cultural values influence how we think about taxes. How do different (tax) cultures impact business behaviour and community engagement? 

Through business examples, we show manifold aspects of taxation, beyond making financial contributions to community and society. 

We will discuss how our individual and collective tax cultures are changing due to the world-wide increase of exchange relations — goods, services, labor and ideas. What is the future role of corporate tax in creating sustainable communities?

Session Contributors:

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Pavle Menalo, University of Belgrade, Serbia

Niccolò Marino, Beyond Research srl, Milano, Italy

Lotta Björklund Larsen, University of Exeter Business School, UK

Hera Brown, Fulbright-Schuman Researcher to the European Union, USA

Christine B. Avenarius, The Central Agency for Continuing Vocational Education and Training in the Skilled Crafts (ZWH), Berlin, Germany

Session contacts: Niccolò Marino and Lotta Björklund Larsen

Serendipity Wednesday: Have a coffee and a chat at the GBAS Cafe!
Wednesday, 10:00 - 16:00 CEST

What did you find interesting in the GBAS sessions? Curious to learn more and share experiences with other participants? Maybe you want to meet people around the world who use business anthropology in different ways? Or maybe you want to learn how to become a business anthropologist yourself.

In true Berlin Style, you're invited to step out to a virtual café for a coffee break and a chat. Everyone is welcome to these open and gently moderated discussions.

Contacts: Mustafa Abdalla and Inga Treitler

Times and Topics here

GLobal Black Lives Initiative: Navigating Business as a Black Researcher of African Descent
Wednesday, 16:00 - 19:15 CEST 

On Wednesday, three senior-level researchers of African descent will discuss their career trajectories, their experiences working with multi-national corporations and non-profits, and their advice for other researchers of African descent pursuing careers in business.

The session will include the following three modules:  

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1. Navigating the Experience of Being Black in Business,

2. Why Your Experience as An Anthropologist and Your Voice as A Black Person Matter,

3. Insiders’ Views Regarding How Anthropology is Leveraged in Business.  

Session attendees will be welcome to ask questions. 

Session Contributors:

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Autumn D. Mcdonald, Owner at ADM Insights and Strategy 

Michael Lewis, Marketing Insights Executive

Tharius Sumter, Insights and Innovation Leader

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16:00 - 18:00 

Headline Talk

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18:15 - 18:45 

Informal “Safe Space” Q&A with Speakers 

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18:45 - 19:15

Q&A with Team Berlin and Global Business Anthropology Steering Committee Members

Session contacts: Autumn D. Mcdonald

Beyond Sustainability

We will explain how the extent of human centricity in technology and business makes us overlook the needs of other types of life on and beyond the planet – to the detriment of all.

Through a business example we will show how building for the broadest ecosystem leads to behavior change among consumers using the case of Mobistyle energy design systems.

We will discuss implications for the future by showcasing how overcoming the concept of sustainability might enable us to integrate the needs of all elements of ecosystems.

Session Contributors:

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Pablo Mondragón Valero, Antropología 2.0, Spain

Dan Podjed, Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (ZRC SAZU), Slovenia

Veronica Reyero Meal, Antropología 2.0, Spain

Lucia Laurent-Neva, Semiotician, Anthropologist and Cultural Strategist, Visual Signo, UK

Session contacts: Dan Podjed and Veronica Reyero

Beyond Sustainability
Thursday, 16:00 - 17:30 CEST

We will explain how the extent of human centricity in technology and business makes us overlook the needs of other types of life on and beyond the planet – to the detriment of all.

Through a business example we will show how building for the broadest ecosystem leads to behavior change among consumers using the case of Mobistyle energy design systems.

We will discuss implications for the future by showcasing how overcoming the concept of sustainability might enable us to integrate the needs of all elements of ecosystems.

Session Contributors:

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Pablo Mondragón Valero, Antropología 2.0, Spain

Dan Podjed, Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (ZRC SAZU), Slovenia

Veronica Reyero Meal, Antropología 2.0, Spain

Lucia Laurent-Neva, Semiotician, Anthropologist and Cultural Strategist, Visual Signo, UK

Session contacts: Dan Podjed and Veronica Reyero

Change + Diffusing Behaviors within Organizations
Thursday, 18:00 - 19:30 CEST

We will explain how roles in business respond to internal and external forces that bring new managerial practices and technology.

Through business examples we will show how the need for internal change is identified and managed in two cases: AB InBev and ACME Productions.

We will discuss implications for the future by revealing ways organizations communicate the need for change across sectors, motivating individual, societal, and governmental commitments with concern to technology access, environmental sustainability, equality, and wellness.

Session Contributors:

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Kyle Gibson, University of Nebraska, Center for Entrepreneurship, USA  
Natalia Usme, Flipa Consultora, Colombia

Melissa Vogel, Business Anthropologist at Hanover Research, USA

Karen Smits, Organizational Anthropologist at Practical Thinking, Australia

Session contacts: Natalia Usme and Kyle Gibson

Business Anthropology for the Future + Building a Knowledge Commons
Friday, 16:00 - 17:30 CEST

We will explain how business anthropology can be applied and promoted to stimulate growth.

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Through a series of interviews with business experts we will explore how anthropology can work in different industries. With interactive polls before and during our session we aim to spark discussion in the audience. We will also share a U.S.-based initiative that will create a brand of business anthropology for the future.

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We will discuss implications for the future by exploring how anthropology contributes to the scope and rigor of innovation in business. A growing community of knowledge of business anthropology practices globally can help businesses become future-proof.

Session Contributors:

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Allegra Pochtler, TraceMap, Berlin, Germany

Robert J. Morais, Columbia Business School, USA

Susan Kresnicka, Kresnicka Research and Insights , USA

Alberto Guglielmone, Marketing Innovation & Business Anthropology, Milan, Italy

Rosa Ester Snyder, User Researcher, Berlin, Germany

Session contact: Alberto Guglielmone

PARTNERS

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