The year 2026 is confirming a paradigm shift in Corporate Security. Organizations are investing more than ever in executive and personnel protection, organizational resilience, and integrated risk management, driven by the growing number of threats targeting executives and business travelers, as well as an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape.
For this reason, this year we have selected one book for each of the major challenges we believe will define Corporate Security in 2026: Executive Protection, Travel Risk Management, AI Governance, Organizational Resilience, Supply Chain Risk, and Geopolitics.
Summer has traditionally been a time to slow down, but it is also an invaluable opportunity to deepen professional knowledge and reflect on the evolution of our profession. For Corporate Security professionals, reading and embracing continuous learning means contributing to a strategy in which understanding emerging risks is the first step toward anticipating them.
The challenges facing Risk Managers, intelligence analysts, and security professionals continue to evolve. Managing travel risk now requires addressing increasingly complex threats before they materialize. Geopolitical developments demand more sophisticated analytical tools, while the governance of artificial intelligence calls for constant study and adaptation.
The books recommended below are by no means the only resources worth studying. However, we selected them not only for their scientific and professional value but also for the quality of their writing, making them excellent companions during the summer months as the profession enters a new phase of development.
The Kriptia team recommends the following titles.
Executive Protection
Executive protection can no longer be viewed solely as physical security. Media exposure, cyber threats, geopolitical tensions, and the growing frequency of international travel require an integrated approach that combines intelligence, preventive analysis, crisis management, and governance.
Robert L. Oatman, Executive Protection: Smarter. Faster. Better.
Originally published in 2015, this book remains one of the leading international references on Executive Protection. Oatman—widely recognized as one of the field’s foremost experts—provides a systematic approach to protecting corporate leaders, covering threat assessment, security planning, risk evaluation, and the management of high-profile events.
Why read it?
It offers a strategic perspective on Executive Protection that remains highly relevant for professionals responsible for designing and managing executive security programs.
Travel Risk Management
International business travel has become one of the most dynamic areas of Corporate Security. Regional conflicts, political instability, extreme weather events, and health threats require increasingly sophisticated planning and close collaboration between Security, HR, intelligence analysts, and Travel Management teams.
Charles Brossman, Building a Travel Risk Management Program
This book explores how to protect traveling employees through an integrated framework that combines duty of care, risk assessment, preventive planning, emergency response, and business continuity.
Why read it?
It remains one of the most comprehensive references on Travel Risk Management and is especially valuable for organizations operating internationally.
AI Governance
Artificial intelligence is reshaping Corporate Security. The adoption of AI systems requires governance models capable of ensuring transparency, accountability, regulatory compliance, and effective risk oversight.
Davide Borrelli & Gianluca Martinelli (Editors), Governance dell’Intelligenza Artificiale. Applicare il nuovo regolamento UE
This recent publication provides a practical approach to AI governance, illustrating how organizations can build oversight programs, establish clear responsibilities, and integrate risk management into decision-making processes. The book is particularly relevant for legal, compliance, risk management, and IT professionals.
Why read it?
As one of the most up-to-date publications on AI governance, it offers practical tools for balancing innovation, compliance, and risk management.
Organizational Resilience
Organizational resilience has become one of the key indicators of corporate maturity. Preparing for future crises means developing adaptability, strengthening decision-making capabilities, and building governance models that remain effective even under conditions of uncertainty.
Julien Haye, Resilient Risk Management: How Risk Leadership Enables Agility
In this recent work, Haye presents a model that integrates resilience, governance, organizational culture, and risk leadership, demonstrating how risk management can become a driver of business value. Numerous international case studies guide readers in building more agile and resilient organizations.
Why read it?
It successfully connects Enterprise Risk Management, organizational resilience, and strategic leadership—topics that are increasingly central to Corporate Security functions.
Supply Chain Risk
In recent years, supply chains have become one of the most vulnerable components of modern organizations. Global dependencies, critical suppliers, geopolitical tensions, and operational disruptions make integrated supply chain risk management essential.
James Crask & Catherine Cyphus, Risk Management for Third Parties and Supply Chains
Published in 2026, this book examines third-party and supplier risk management, presenting methodologies for evaluating strategic partners, strengthening supply chain governance, and ultimately improving organizational resilience.
Why read it?
It is one of the newest and most comprehensive publications on the subject, recognizing supply chain security as a core pillar of modern Corporate Security.
Geopolitics and Global Risk
For many organizations, geopolitics is no longer merely a background context but a tangible operational variable capable of influencing investments, personnel security, supply chain continuity, industrial strategy, and even broader economic scenarios.
Marko Papic, Geopolitical Alpha: An Investment Framework for Predicting the Future
Papic introduces an innovative methodology for interpreting geopolitical developments through the lens of states’ strategic interests, moving beyond simplistic narratives in favor of a multidisciplinary analytical framework.
Why read it?
It provides an invaluable perspective for professionals working in intelligence, Corporate Security, and Risk Management, helping transform geopolitical developments into practical risk assessment tools.
Final Thoughts
The Corporate Security profession of the near future will become increasingly interdisciplinary. The topics covered in this reading list represent only some of the areas that, in Kriptia’s view, deserve particular attention from today’s security professionals and risk practitioners.
Why books? Because investing in education—even during moments of apparent calm—strengthens not only individual expertise but also an organization’s ability to navigate an international environment that continues to grow more complex.
Finally, we would like to recommend two additional books by Italian authors that offer broader perspectives on risk.
The first is Fabio Accardi’s Governo e controllo dei rischi, while the second is L’interesse nazionale nell’economia delle aziende, edited by Alberto Quagli.
The first provides an Italian perspective on international risk management frameworks, making it particularly applicable to Corporate Security functions. The second, also published by FrancoAngeli, helps readers understand how geopolitical and strategic dynamics concretely influence corporate risk management.
The Kriptia team wishes you a productive summer, enjoyable reading, and continuous professional growth.