It’s been a while since we launched Above Trends, Beyond Insights. What started as an experiment in rethinking our editorial voice has now become a steady practice: every issue, we scan the signals that matter and translate them into business insight. Our commitment remains the same (less noise, more signal), with an even stronger focus on what executives need to navigate uncertainty: timely context, curated trends, and practical guidance.

Short-term calm, long-term risk: the Corporate fallout of retreating from DEI

Earlier this autumn, a number of U.S. corporations, spurred by Donald Trump’s calls to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, quietly began to freeze, rename or even cancel internal DEI initiatives.

The ripple effects reached Europe within weeks: multinationals with American headquarters asked their regional branches to “align,” often by removing diversity metrics from executive compensation or board dashboards.

From a governance standpoint, such moves reveal how fragile corporate courage can be when political tides shift.

I understand the panic that must have spread across HQs: no global executive wants to face lawsuits or shareholder revolts. Yet the cost of appeasement is steep.

Years of trust-building and outreach toward under-represented communities risk being erased overnight. People belonging to those minorities will not forget the abrupt reversal, nor the companies that chose silence over consistency.

For European leaders, the lesson is both ethical and strategic. DEI has never been about slogans; it’s about legitimacy. In a continent where demographic change, migration and skill shortages define competitiveness, diversity is not a “social cause” but a long-term business asset.

Abandoning it to follow foreign political pressure weakens governance and credibility alike. As boardrooms prepare 2026 strategies, the question is simple: which organizations will stand by their values when it stops being easy?

TREND TRACKER

Europe’s tech sovereignty: building power through infrastructure

The European Union is accelerating its effort to reclaim technological autonomy. Through the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU), Brussels and member states are co-investing in a network of supercomputers and data infrastructures designed to reduce dependency on U.S. and Asian cloud providers.

These systems, with major deployments in Finland and Spain, and further systems planned or under installation in Germany, serve both research and industry, offering petascale and pre-exascale capacity for AI training, simulations and analytics.

What makes this moment pivotal is not just scale, but governance. By anchoring AI and data processing inside a European legal and ethical framework, EuroHPC aims to ensure data residency, environmental sustainability, and fair access for enterprises. For business leaders, this creates a dual imperative: to align their infrastructure roadmaps with European facilities, and to develop internal competences capable of leveraging them. Tech sovereignty is becoming an operational—not merely political—theme.

Want to learn more?

• Euro HPC - The European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU)

• European Commission - The Digital Europe Programme

• Reuters - Germany's Merz inaugurates Nvidia supercomputer for research

• Le Monde - Pour sortir de la dépendance européenne aux Big Tech, il faut une politique numérique non alignée

QUICK INSIGHT

Governance & technology: end-of-year check-up for a stronger Q1

As the calendar year closes and Q1 2026 planning begins, leadership teams across Europe are reviewing strategic progress and preparing next-year priorities. This is the ideal moment to connect governance and technology; ensuring boards, executives and infrastructures are ready for a fast-shifting digital environment.

Practical steps:

• Audit board composition before year-end: verify whether at least one member brings deep digital or AI expertise; plan nominations or advisory roles for Q1 2026.

• Map digital exposure: assess where your cloud, AI or data operations rely on non-European infrastructure; set clear priorities for partnerships or migrations aligned with EU compliance and energy efficiency.

• Run a 90-day “governance tech sprint”: from January to March, organize a joint board–executive session on geopolitical tech risks (AI regulation, data sovereignty, chip supply), followed by an internal workshop with the CIO/CDO to update your 2026 digital roadmap and resilience KPIs.

WHO IS BABINI MAZZARI

Our Value Proposition

Babini Mazzari is the strategic IT partner for European companies looking to navigate digital transformation in a structured, pragmatic, and sustainable way.
We don’t just deliver technical solutions - we work as an extension of your internal team, helping you integrate systems, optimize processes, and lead change with clarity and competence.

Our approach is built on listening, transparency, and a strong results-driven culture. Whether you're scaling, modernizing, or rethinking your operating model, we support every client with the right tools, clear methodology, and long-term vision.
Above Technology. Beyond Solutions.

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