The Global Edge with Sophie Krantz

Sophie Krantz
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A podcast that shares insights on what’s shifting in the world, across socioeconomic, geopolitical, and technological areas, and how it can shape the way leaders think, act, and lead globally. It helps leaders gain a global edge. www.sophiekrantz.com

  1. FEB 18

    Soft Power: The Strategic Weapon

    This edition explores recent work by global strategist Sophie Krantz where she makes the case that soft power should be viewed as a strategic weapon rather than a passive background signal. We live at a time when hard power often fails to solve complex global issues, trust and reputation are essential for forming the coalitions needed to tackle challenges like climate change and technological governance. Organisations that cultivate strategic gravity can reduce operational friction, lower their cost of capital, and attract top-tier talent. By acting as orchestrators of shared solutions, leaders transform social influence into a competitive advantage that builds long-term systemic resilience. Ultimately, this edition explores how the most successful entities in 2026 will be those that deploy their credibility to solve difficult, large-scale problems. Read the original article here: https://www.sophiekrantz.com/p/soft-power-weak-or-strategic-weapon This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sophiekrantz.com

    15 min
  2. Soft Power: Weak or Strategic Weapon?

    FEB 13

    Soft Power: Weak or Strategic Weapon?

    The 2026 paradox: more force, less progress Looking around the world, raw power is back: wars, sanctions, aggressive industrial policies, and tight controls on critical minerals and technology. Yet, despite these hard moves, progress on our most important shared goals is stalling or reversing. Climate risks are compounding, and many SDG targets are slipping away. This shows a power paradox: more force on its own cannot solve shared problems. And yet, soft power is still widely perceived as weak. The question for 2026 is whether you leave it as background noise - or use it to move beyond the status quo, open doors, align coalitions, and unlock outsized outcomes on shared problems. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sophiekrantz.com

    11 min

  3. JAN 16

    The 2025 Velocity Gap: Navigating Global Breakthroughs

    In this episode, we explore the concept of the ‘Velocity Gap, a framework developed by global strategist Sophie Krantz to explain the diverging realities of 2025. While the world faced stagnation in some areas, there is a parallel track of positive-sum breakthroughs accelerated rapidly, removing structural friction across trade, energy, health, and work. We discuss the 2025 acceleration map” which outlines 20 specific areas where motion increased, including: • Technology & Energy: The shift of fusion energy from science fiction to commercial construction, and SpaceX making reusable heavy-lift rockets routine. • Global Economy: The defiance of hard landing predictions, the rise of the Vietnam Premium in supply chains, and the expansion of digital trade architecture. • Society & Governance: The ratification of the High Seas Treaty, the success of large-scale four-day workweek trials, and the global export of India’s Digital Public Infrastructure. The episode concludes with the critical strategic question for 2026: Are leaders organised to defend the status quo, or aligned with the direction where the world is actually moving? Read the original article here: https://www.sophiekrantz.com/p/2025-spun-faster This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sophiekrantz.com

    16 min

  4. 11/23/2025

    Local Immersion and Global Leverage: Achieving World-Class from a Single Location

    In this edition we explore the work of Global Strategist Sophie Krantz on a strategy for leaders seeking to act beyond local surroundings without the strain of global expansion. The episode highlights Maido, a Lima, Peru, restaurant rated the world’s best in 2025 by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, as proof that you can achieve world-class standing - and draw the world to you - from a single location. Maido employs a strategy of Local Immersion (anchored in Peruvian ingredients and local ethos) alongside Global Leverage. Its Nikkei cuisine, cross-border networks, and participation in international dialogue allow the team to learn from and contribute to top culinary professionals globally, reinforcing its reputation without replicating itself elsewhere. Maido proves that a global mindset is sufficient for success, commanding global influence even without a global footprint. The lesson for leaders is to choose ambition (measuring against world-class benchmarks) and agency (designing on your terms) to create something distinctive that the world actively seeks out. Ultimately, Maido demonstrates that staying rooted does not mean staying small. Read the article here: https://www.sophiekrantz.com/p/world-class-without-global-expansion This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sophiekrantz.com

    14 min

  5. 11/15/2025

    Terra Incognita: Redrawing the Map of Modern Strategy

    Maps are fundamentally reflections of our worldview, not just navigational aids. Historically, maps placed what was central to a civilisation at the physical centre: the Babylonian Map of the World (c. 6th Century BCE) placed Babylon itself at the heart, reflecting belief and geography. Medieval maps later centered Jerusalem using symbolism over scale. The appearance of Terra Incognita on early European maps marked uncharted territories, signifying where knowledge ended and possibility began. Today, global strategist, Sophie Krantz, explores how the common global reference is fragmenting. Instead of sharing a collective frame, modern technologies and national priorities draw diverging versions of reality. We are now arguing over which map to use, rather than what lies beyond its edges. Maps today illustrate the movement of people, data, and opportunity flow. Strategic choice is key: when leaders label the unknown as risk rather than possibility, they shrink their world. The goal is to choose your vision and redraw the map with intent. Read the original article by Sophie Krantz, here: https://www.sophiekrantz.com/p/terra-incognita This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sophiekrantz.com

    10 min

  6. 11/12/2025

    Terra Incognita

    The world’s oldest surviving map was etched on a clay tablet in Mesopotamia around the 6th century BCE. Known as the Babylonian Map of the World or Imago Mundi, it shows the city of Babylon at the centre, the Euphrates River flowing through it, and the known lands encircled by a “Bitter River” - the ocean. Beyond that ring sit small triangles labelled as distant, perhaps mythical, regions. It wasn’t so much a navigation aid, yet rather a worldview. Babylon’s placement at the centre said as much about belief as geography. The map reflected how people made sense of their world - what was known, what was unknown, and who belonged where. Terra Incognita Terra Incognita - Latin for “unknown land” - appeared on early European maps to mark uncharted territories. It signified both danger and discovery: areas where knowledge ended and where possibility began. We all can see leaders facing equivalent frontiers - the limits of what they know, see, and believe possible. Over time, maps evolved with our understanding. We each get to choose what we see - our worldview, and the scope of our Terra Incognita. Heading into 2026, there’s value in recognising the limits and how they limit, delay, or reduce our wider vision for commercial success or positive-sum impact. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sophiekrantz.com

    4 min

  7. 10/26/2025

    The Essential Founder (& Leadership) Questions: Why This? Why Me? Why Now?

    This episode summary focuses on the three essential founder and leadership questions: “Why this? Why me? Why now?”. Building on work by Global Strategist Sophie Krantz, the podcast explores these questions, noting that while they gained prominence in venture capital for assessing startup founders, they are now vital for any leader driving change or challenging the status quo. These questions test for insight, authenticity, fit, and timing, revealing whether the problem being solved is real, if the leader has the unique capability for the work, and if the world is ready for action. Learn how strong answers reduce perceived risk and are anchored in conviction, a developed worldview, and a personal connection to the mission - traits that distinguish successful leaders from those who rely on imitation or shallow intent. Ultimately, understanding and clearly answering these questions helps leaders align ambition with agency, turning intent into investable impact. Read the original article here: https://www.sophiekrantz.com/p/why-this-why-me-why-now This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sophiekrantz.com

    15 min

  8. 10/24/2025

    Why (This)? Why (Me)? Why (Now)?

    The questions “Why this?”, “Why me?”, and “Why now?” sit at the heart of startup investing and founder assessment. Increasingly, they’re just as relevant for any leader trying to drive change or get a new idea over the line, especially when it challenges the status quo. They’re the three questions founders are expected to answer when pitching a new venture or seeking investment. Each tests for insight, authenticity, fit, and timing and are the foundations of credibility and lasting success. Their moment is now. It’s the time for all of us to be able to answer them clearly, confidently, and in context. Let’s explore how. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.sophiekrantz.com

    6 min
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A podcast that shares insights on what’s shifting in the world, across socioeconomic, geopolitical, and technological areas, and how it can shape the way leaders think, act, and lead globally. It helps leaders gain a global edge. www.sophiekrantz.com

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