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The 9th edition of the Leadership Summit organised by Bangladesh Brand Forumwa held at the United Convention Centre in the city on Saturday to examine the evolving demands of resilient leadership.

Presented by Mutual Trust Bank PLC, Powered by American International University-Bangladesh and United Group, and in association with Twelve Clothing, the summit gathered the country’s most influential business and C-suite leaders, founders, leaders from corporate boardrooms, development institutions, business academia, and investment bodies to explore the theme — ‘Resilient Leadership – Thriving Amid Uncertainty.’

Welcoming the participants, Shariful Islam, founder and managing director of Bangladesh Brand Forum, stated, ‘Today, the demand is for leaders who are transformative in vision, ethical in intent, adaptive in practice, and resilient in crisis. This summit is a call to rethink leadership — not just as authority, but as responsibility, stewardship, and long-term value creation.’

The chief guest, Professor AK Enamul Haque, director general, Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies, said, ‘Operational success is no longer enough — we need strategic leadership that understands data, anticipates disruption, and responds with clarity and purpose.’ The keynote sessions set the strategic tone for the summit.

Eisuke Tachikawa, founder and design strategist, Nosigner; professor, Keio University, highlighted how creative leadership can strengthen resilience and shape a thriving future.

Professor Andrew Karl Delios, provost’s chair and vice dean, Business School, National University of Singapore, reflected on leadership models suited for emerging economies facing turbulence and transformation.

In his keynote address, Enamul Haque highlighted that growth alone is not enough — leadership, institutions and planning must advance in tandem if Bangladesh is to move forward with stability.

He noted that stronger leadership capacity, better economic foresight and credible institutions are essential to retain capital and sustain development.

Throughout the summit, insights were shared by prominent leaders including Ruhul Quddus Khan, chief executive officer and managing director, Unilever Bangladesh Limited, Johan Buse, chief executive officer, Banglalink Digital Communications Limited, Mohammad Enamul Huque, managing director and country chief risk officer, Standard Chartered Bank, Bidyut Kumar Saha, lead investment officer, Asian Development Bank, Shehzad Munim, independent director, Linde Bangladesh Limited, professor  Syed Ferhat Anwar, vice-chancellor, BRAC University, Syed Mahbubur Rahman, managing director and CEO,  Mutual Trust Bank, professor Imran Rahman,  School of Business, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh ; Abdullah Hil Nakib, deputy managing director, TEAM Group; among others.