Business in Focus

In this episode Virgin Group CEO Josh Bayliss sits down with PwC’s Global Workforce Leader Pete Brown to discuss the decisions and culture that have propelled the brand’s trailblazing reputation for reinvention. How has that mindset and purpose been successfully infused across a broad portfolio that covers everything from finance to telecoms and health to holidays? We look at the role of leadership when it comes to finding the right path through today’s challenges as well as how technology, GenAI and purpose are all playing a role in taking the Virgin experience forward.

How do you compete and win as a manufacturer in today’s challenging environment? For mattress manufacturer Sleepeezee, doubling down on quality and purpose has been their continued route to growth. Host Quentin Cole is joined by Sleepeezee Managing Director Steve Warren alongside Cara Haffey, PwC UK Industrial Manufacturing Sector Leader, to explore how purpose and brand factors into productivity, net zero and the sustainability agenda as well as recruiting and retaining talent in our latest In Conversation With episode.

How can a broader view of resilience not only protect your organisation but support taking advantage of opportunity? We explore how elevating resilience - to a mindset and culture that cuts across your organisation - goes beyond managing risk and empowers you, your people and supply chain to collaborate for better outcomes for all. Join host Emily Khan and special guests Elaine Bucknor, PwC strategic advisor for cyber, technology and enterprise resilience, and Elisa Moscolin, Sage Executive Vice President for Sustainability as they explore how doing the right thing for your resilience is often also the right thing for business.

Digital and data offer insight into changes around how your customers shop, their needs and expectations. And when harnessed with the right blend of creativity and innovation, there are real opportunities to forge brand loyalty. Host Rowena Daines is joined by Tom Adams, our Experience Consulting and Marketing Transformation leader and Sam Tomlinson who leads our Customer Marketing and Media Insight team to explore how brands can carve out distinctive experiences for their customers.

Flexible working, talent and capability gaps, challenging decisions around pay and reward - how can business leaders unpick these complex issues to move forward in a way that works for their people as well as their bottom line? Host Emily Khan is joined by economist Nabil Taleb and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion consulting director Katy Bennett to examine what the findings of Women in Work Index mean for society and the competitive position of both businesses and the UK as a whole. When an 18 year old woman entering the UK workforce today will not see gender pay parity in her working lifetime, are there unexpected areas that could create a more equal workplace?

Energy security and the societal impact of rising prices amid a cost of living crisis have added to the pressure facing the energy, utilities and resources industry as set out in our recent ten point response plan. How has the impact of recent events - from the geopolitical to the economic - affected the progress of a transition to a greener, Net Zero future? And where do we go from here?

PwC’s Head of Industries, Quentin Cole, is joined by Energy UK’s Deputy CEO, Dhara Vyas, and PwC’s Leader of Industry for Energy, Utilities and Resources, Drew Stevenson, to unpick a complex set of issues affecting many in different ways. And together they uncover where the pacesetters and power of purpose are pointing a way forward.

As COP27 kicks off, how can conversations and pledges turn into meaningful action at the pace needed? The challenges are of a scale and complexity that can’t be solved in isolation. Join host Rowena Daines to explore how organisations and investors can work alongside innovative ClimateTech to direct focus and funding towards collaborative momentum on progress. PwC’s ESG leader for Deals, James Pincus will be providing insight into the trends in the market while Grey Parrot’s CEO Mikela Druckman will share the perspective of the innovative new scaleups offering new ways to tackle sustainability.

he relationship between people and technology has not always been an easy one, but when businesses strike the right balance - of human ingenuity combined with the power of technology - they can achieve great things. 

Our host Will Sturgeon is joined by Steph Kelly, Chief People Officer at IRIS Software Group, and Lola Evans, a technology Director at PwC. Together, they cover the role of culture and embedding a passion for technology within your company, and discuss how organisations can access the skills and diverse perspectives they need.