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What should I find out at INSEAD 2026?

Your questions go to Fontainebleau with me

On 9 May I am taking the train to Fontainebleau for the INSEAD ETA Conference.

The conference is sold out. Sessions 1 and 5 are running across two amphitheatres to fit the demand. Most of this community cannot be in the room. That is why I am going.

Before I leave, I want to know what you would actually want answered if you were sitting there.

Five main questions, one optional bonus. Ninety seconds. Your input becomes the report's table of contents.

If your question makes it in, your name goes in the acknowledgements of the 2026 INSEAD Report (shipping 16 May).

Alexander

Buyout Diary
https://storage.tally.so/d3529cd7-430d-41c4-8ef2-c328a4fae967/Agenda-INSEAD-ETA-Conference-May-9-2026.png

The 2026 programme. Your input on the next screens helps me prioritise where to go deepest.

Source both images from clubs.insead.edu/searchfund/conference/.

1. What is the single biggest question you would want answered if you were sitting at INSEAD on 9 May?

The thing you cannot find a clean answer to anywhere. Be specific. Half a sentence is fine. A paragraph is better.

2. I am attending Sessions 2b (various routes to ETA) and 3a (lessons from setbacks) in person, plus all plenary sessions. Which of the plenary topics would you most want covered in depth in the report?

I will be in the room for the plenaries (Sessions 1, 4, and 5) and two breakout sessions I chose
ahead of time: various routes to ETA, and lessons from setbacks. Your answer tells me which plenary to go deepest on.
2. I am attending Sessions 2b (various routes to ETA) and 3a (lessons from setbacks) in person, plus all plenary sessions. Which of the plenary topics would you most want covered in depth in the report?
A
B
C
D
E
F

3. What is one thing about European search funds or acquisition entrepreneurship that nobody talks about openly but you wish someone would?

The unspoken parts. The questions you would ask in private but never on a panel. This is where the most interesting answers come from, and often the most useful sections of the final report.

3b. Bonus question for readers who have been at this a while: what is one setback or painful lesson from your own search or acquisition that you wish you had known to expect?

Anonymised by default when referenced in the report. Session 3a at INSEAD is about lessons from setbacks, and your input here feeds directly into that chapter alongside what I hear in the room. Skip if you would rather not share.

4. Is there a specific speaker, panellist, or investor type you want me to find and get a direct answer from?

If there is someone specific you would track down yourself if you were at INSEAD — tell me who. Could be someone on the advisory council (Pawel Malon, Kieron Chalder, Niel Wyma, Simón Bores) or anyone else who tends to show up in the hallway conversations. Or just describe the type — investor, operator, faculty, searcher who closed recently.

Where are you in your journey right now?

This helps me write the report at the right level for you.
Where are you in your journey right now?
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
One last thing
If you want your name in the acknowledgements when the report ships on 16 May, leave your details below. If you would rather stay anonymous, skip this and just hit submit. Either way, your question goes into the room with me.

Your Name

Your Email