International Colloquium on Management, Trade and Logistics

Scientific rationale

The global economic system is experiencing an accumulation of shocks and disruptions: geopolitical volatility, trade tensions, the reconfiguration of value chains, health and climate crises, the scarcity of certain resources, rising compliance requirements and accelerating technological change. These dynamics are transforming modes of competition, investment priorities and regulatory obligations. Disruptions are becoming more frequent and planning is becoming more uncertain, particularly for organizations embedded in global value chains.

In this context, organizational resilience — the capacity to absorb a shock and maintain an acceptable level of functioning — is no longer more than a minimal condition. Academic debate now calls for moving beyond the “return to the initial state” paradigm to explore antifragility: the capacity of a system to learn, reconfigure itself and improve its performance as a result of uncertainty, disruption and stress (Taleb, 2012). This conceptual shift calls for managerial models combining adaptive governance, diversification of options, organizational modularity, a culture of experimentation and data-driven risk management. This reading aligns with work on dynamic capabilities (Teece, 2007) and on supply chain resilience (Sheffi, 2005; Ivanov & Dolgui, 2020).

The rise of artificial intelligence — including generative AI, advanced analytics and cognitive automation — is opening a new cycle of operational improvement and innovation (demand forecasting, dynamic planning, predictive maintenance, inventory optimization, supplier-risk detection, transport management and real-time decision support). At the same time, it intensifies governance challenges: data quality and sovereignty, cybersecurity, algorithmic bias and fairness, explainability, compliance, and the impact on employment and skills (Brynjolfsson & McAfee, 2014).

Finally, sustainability is no longer a peripheral dimension: it now determines access to markets, financing and partnerships. The decarbonization of logistics chains (scopes 1-2-3), traceability, circularity and social inclusion are becoming key determinants of performance and competitiveness (Carter & Rogers, 2008). For emerging countries, the central question is one of convergence: how can advanced technologies be adopted without abandoning fundamentals such as governance, infrastructure, human capital and standardization, and without reproducing carbon-intensive or socially exclusive models? Morocco is a relevant field of study and experimentation in this respect. Its position at the Euro-African crossroads, the growing strength of its industrial ecosystems and its energy-transition trajectory directly illustrate the issues addressed by the colloquium.

The theme of the 2026 edition brings together three fields — antifragility, artificial intelligence and sustainability — and is aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 8, 9, 12, 13 and 17). It favours contributions likely to lead to recommendations for public policy, corporate strategy, training and international research collaboration. The central question submitted for scientific debate is the following: how can organizations move from a logic of defensive resilience (absorb and return) to a logic of offensive antifragility (learn, transform and create value) in an environment marked by uncertainty, the acceleration of AI and the imperative of sustainability?