Wanted: The Unicorn Who Runs Your Global Public Affairs

Stefan Borst, Senior Partner Advocacy Strategy

Ten years ago, the description of the perfect Public Affairs leader was simple enough: someone who knew Brussels or Washington, could write a crisp briefing note, and had the sort of Rolodex (for the older ones among us) that guaranteed a good table with an influential person at the right reception. Today, that profile would barely get them through the door.

In 2025, the Global Head of Public Affairs is no longer a glorified lobbyist. The job has become part strategist, part corporate diplomat, part data scientist, part risk manager - and, on difficult days, part therapist. They don’t just open doors in ministries; they help a company steer through a volatile world where regulation never sleeps, geopolitics dictates markets, and trust in business is fragile at best.

The natural question, then, is what the ideal candidate should look like - and equally important, what kind of internal environment they need in order to thrive.

The Job Has Changed - Radically

Since 2019, five shifts have redefined Public Affairs. Geopolitics has muscled its way into the boardroom, with McKinsey surveys ranking political instability as the single greatest threat to global growth. Inflation may come and go, supply chains may adjust, but politics now dictates the tempo. A Public Affairs leader buried three levels down in Communications or - worse - tucked away in Legal is not only misplaced, but strategically dangerous.

At the same time, trust is wobbling. Edelman’s 2025 Trust Barometer speaks of a „crisis of grievance,“ with governments, CEOs, and even citizens suspicious of one another. In such an environment, every statement carries the risk of a digital „shitstorm“, and the wisest leaders know when silence is far more eloquent than words.

Meanwhile, regulation is fragmenting. The globalizing momentum of the past - more free trade agreements, more coordination and cooperation - is over. We now inhabit a multipolar, protectionist world where tariffs, rules, and market access are weapons of power. A Global PA leader who understands only the mechanics and rhythms of one system, whether it is Brussels, Washington, or Beijing, is no longer enough. Mastery or at least a deeper understanding of multiple regulatory ecosystems has become a necessity.

Technology has added another twist. BCG estimates that more than 80 percent of communications and PA tasks fall into the „AI assisted“-category. The next generation of leaders doesn’t need to code, but they must be digitally fluent enough to build and supervise an intelligence stack, understand where AI adds value, where it is just consuming resources and where its hallucinations could cost the company dearly.

Finally, the old mantra that policy should stay out of brands is in for an overhaul. The drivers of policy nowadays are an integral part of most brand positioning. Ever seen a product „fully recyclable“, „sustainably produced“ or decorated with „pride“ colours? All of these are directly linked to societal and political developments, not markets. The big policy trends affect brand positioning more than ever before and they matter both internally towards employees as well as externally for customers, especially in a B2C businesses. The head of the Global PA function should have a keen understanding of these implications.

Overall, the role is evolving at breakneck speed.

What Should Drive Them

The mission of the Global PA leader is deceptively simple: to protect and to promote the business. Protection means avoiding regulatory ambushes, trade barriers, or reputational crises that can kill opportunities before they reach the P&L. Promotion means securing licenses to operate, winning market access, and shaping the rules of the game more effectively than the competition. This is the essence of non-market strategy. Done well, it is the cheapest growth lever available; done poorly, it is death by a thousand directives.

The Hard Edge - What They Must Do

The right candidate must master non-market strategy, translating regulatory rumblings into quantifiable exposures and interventions, thinking as much like the strategy team as the policy team. They must also be capable designers of geopolitical risk responses, stress-testing supply chains and market access under various scenarios and producing board-ready options.

Regulatory execution at scale has become another defining skill. The AI Act will not wait, nor will the DSA, DMA, CSRD, or CSDDD. The PA chief must orchestrate synchronized plays across compliance, advocacy, and communications, often juggling competing timelines and jurisdictions.

Equally critical is fluency in data and AI. Leaders should be able to build a 24/7 intelligence system, visualize stakeholder networks, and separate AI’s true capabilities from its hype. A candidate who dismisses digital tools or cannot distinguish between strengths and shortcomings of today’s platforms is already behind.

Coalition-building and corporate diplomacy remain indispensable. No company wins policy battles alone. The right leader designs credible alliances, mobilizes third-party voices, and - on occasion - persuades governments that supporting the company is in the national interest.

And the ideal candidate must be an exceptional communicator. Clear expression is not a cosmetic skill - it is the lifeblood of effective Public Affairs. Every thought must be translated into words, and every word retranslated into the listener’s understanding. It is a fragile chain, and Murphy’s Law applies: any ambiguity in reasoning, argument, or expression will eventually cause misunderstanding. Left unmanaged, small cracks in clarity can snowball into strategic misalignment or even a breakdown in trust.

The Soft Edge - Who They Must Be

Yet competence without character is useless. Public Affairs operates in too complex and volatile an environment for technical skills alone. The best leaders move seamlessly across silos internally and across divides externally, aligning rather than commanding, augmenting rather than dictating. They must speak both the language of communications and the logic of legal teams, understand trade compliance as well as brand positioning and know when the boldest move is to say nothing at all.

Experience sharpens judgment, but curiosity keeps it alive. Policy knowledge now has a short half-life, and leaders who cannot adapt or who dislike learning will fade quickly. Perhaps most crucially, they must be people of integrity. Trust is not a side benefit - it is the currency of influence. An oversized ego in this role is not only unattractive; it is a professional liability.

The Environment They Need

Hiring the unicorn is only the beginning; the greater danger is stabling it in the wrong barn. The PA leader must report directly to the CEO - or at least into a dual anchor with the CEO and General Counsel. Anything else risks signalling that Public Affairs is merely a decorative exercise.

The most effective companies establish an „External Risk and Opportunity Council,“ linking Strategy, Legal, Sustainability, Security, and HR. Such a council might meet monthly in normal times and daily in crises, providing the rhythm and connectivity the role requires.

Data and tools are not luxuries but table stakes. A policy risk ledger, regulatory calendars, and AI-enabled monitoring systems should be as standard as financial reporting dashboards. Performance must be judged on outcomes, not activity - costs avoided, compliance timelines shortened, opportunities enabled.

And none of this is possible without adequate resources and budget. You don’t buy a race car and expect it to perform without fuel.

A Closing Thought

The best Global Public Affairs leader is no longer a well-dressed door-opener. The real bottleneck today is not access but readiness. CEOs do not need more handshakes in Brussels; they need leaders who can turn volatility and chaos into navigable strategy and measurable results.

A great PA leader is a system designer, orchestrator, and integrator - one of the rare functions that can reduce risk AND create growth simultaneously. That is not a nice-to-have, it is crucial.

So, if you are still tempted to dismiss Public Affairs as „the team that handle politicians“, ask yourself: who in your company is responsible for translating geopolitics into strategy? Who owns the rolling regulatory tide and its effect on your bottom line? Who is trusted enough, internally and externally, to judge when speaking is more dangerous than silence? And who can advise with confidence once a political crisis hits?

If you cannot answer, then your unicorn is missing. And in 2025, not having one is not just risky. It is reckless.