In an effort to enhance productivity movement leadership capacities among its members, the APO partnered with the Institut Européen d’Administration des Affaires (INSEAD) to develop an intensive executive leadership program tailored for NPOs. This program, held from 29 April to 3 May at INSEAD’s Europe Campus in Fontainebleau, France, was attended by 12 NPO leaders.

Philip Parker, Program Director, INSEAD (second row, R), Camila Castellanos, Programme Manager, INSEAD (first row, L), NPO leaders and APO Secretary-General Dr. Indra (first row, 6th R) at INSEAD

Under the guidance of eight distinguished global thought leaders and practitioners in productivity-related domains, including Alexandra Roulet, former macroeconomic and public policy adviser to France’s President Emmanuel Macron, Philippe Aghion of College de France, and others, the program addressed emerging productivity challenges and methods for effectively addressing them through the formulation of strategic initiatives. In his inaugural remarks, APO Secretary-General Dr. Indra Pradana Singawinata underscored the imperative for the Asia-Pacific region to confront forthcoming structural productivity challenges with resolve, advocating for a pathway of sustainable productivity and inclusive growth. The program framework adopted a business-centric perspective to formulate productivity initiatives aimed at fostering widespread prosperity through the utilization of technological advances such as AI.

Dean of INSEAD Dr. Francisco Veloso (R) with APO Secretary-General Dr. Indra (L)

During his mission in France, APO Secretary-General Dr. Indra convened a strategic meeting on 1 May in Paris with OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann. The objective was to foster deeper collaborative ties, particularly in cross-cutting areas related to productivity enhancement, sustainability, and innovation, including the continuation of previous joint projects between the two institutions on productivity measurement and statistics. This marked the first meeting of the secretaries-general since the culmination of collaborative research projects in 2019 and 2022. Secretary-General Cormann emphasized the strategic importance of policy reform in various sectors to support productivity-enhancement initiatives and extended an invitation to Secretary-General Dr. Indra to explore further avenues of collaboration between the APO and OECD.

OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann (L) with APO Secretary-General Dr. Indra (R)

In a subsequent meeting on 2 May with the management of the OECD’s Global Forum on Productivity (GFP), in which the APO has been a member since 2020, several agreements were reached. Those included initiatives aimed at strengthening the capacity of APO members in conducting productivity analysis and formulating productivity policies. Both parties concurred on utilizing the GFP as a platform for policy and research exchanges.

The series of high-level engagements concluded with a discussion on 3 May between APO Secretary-General Dr. Indra and Alain Durre, General Rapporteur of France’s National Council of Productivity. They explored several potential collaboration efforts, including bolstering the APO’s policy consultancy projects and fostering exchanges on productivity research.