The Penta Podcast Channel

This week, Penta acquired Copperfield Advisory, a communications, brand, and strategy consulting firm based in New York, further cementing Penta's position as the world's first and foremost comprehensive stakeholder solutions firm. Andy Whitehouse, senior partner at Penta and former managing partner and founder at Copperfield, joins Penta President Matt McDonald on this week's episode of What's at Stake to break down what this acquisition means for Penta and its clients. Andy joins Penta with over 20 years of experience in strategic communications. Before joining Copperfield, he was chief communications officer at IBM, Willis Towers Watson, and McKinsey & Company, and worked to tackle poverty and social exclusion as a UK government policymaker.The Copperfield team brings extensive C-suite experience and issue fluency to Penta, deepening the firm's expertise and offerings in disciplines including brand positioning, transaction communications, talent strategy, and crisis preparedness. Matt and Andy start out the conversation by discussing Copperfield and Penta's complimentary outlooks on the importance of data-driven decision-making and insights. Later, they dive into Andy's extensive experience advising major companies and developing public policy in a range of key sectors including financial services, private equity, tech, healthcare, and philanthropy.Read more about Penta’s acquisition of Copperfield here.

On today's Macrocast, hosts Bryan DeAngelis, Ylan Mui, Brendan Walsh, and John Fagan are joined by Penta's Oliver Edelmann to unpack another big week of macroeconomic news. The group unpacks the latest turmoil in the banking sector, saga of Silicon Valley Bank, First Republic Bank, and the banking sector more broadly, and discusses the potential reactions from the Federal Reserve. They also explain why consumer sentiment might impact the Fed's response, delving into insights from Penta and Civic Science's latest ESI analysis.

On February 27, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen unveiled a new trade agreement between the UK and European Union (EU) called the Windsor Framework. This comes after years of confusion and empty shelves resulting from the post-Brexit Northern Ireland protocol, which has been criticized for making it difficult to import goods to Northern Ireland from the rest of the United Kingdom. Penta Partners Kevin Madden and Rory O'Donnell sit down to decipher some of the nuances surrounding the Windsor Framework, the Northern Ireland protocol, and why these trade agreements have such a charged history. The two outline how the Windsor Framework will change the current Northern Ireland Protocol, particularly with respect to the Irish sea border. They also explain what the new "red lane, green lane" system will look like for the movement of goods on the Irish isle.Kevin and Rory then outline some of the political responses to the new framework in the region. How will Stormont–the Northern Ireland Assembly–respond? And if the Windsor Framework is implemented, how might it positively impact the future of investment and opportunity in Northern Ireland and beyond?

There's been no shortage of gripping macroeconomic developments this week. On today's Macrocast, hosts Bryan DeAngelis, Ylan Mui, Brendan Walsh, and John Fagan dive into the February jobs report and what it can tell us about women in the workforce, before breaking down some key takeaways from Fed Chair Jerome Powell's semi-annual testimony before Congress. In the second half of the show, the group takes on this morning's astonishing meltdown at Silicon Valley Bank. Read Penta's February Jobs Day Fact Sheet here.

In this edition of What's at Stake, Penta Partner Stratton Kirton interviews the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) Principal Energy Specialist David Elzinga about the Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM).Countries around the world have committed to lowering their emissions over the coming decades. While the U.S. and Europe are approaching the transition to clean energy as developed nations, countries across southeast Asia and Africa are attempting to meet their climate commitments while their populations boom. The Asian Development Bank's ETM is an innovative program specifically designed to help developing nations transition more quickly to clean energy in a just and tailored way.ETM aims to harness private and concessional capital to accelerate the retirement or repurposing of Southeast Asian fossil fuel plants and crowd in investment for clean energy alternatives. Throughout the episode, David and Stratton discuss the details of ETM, the ADB's commitment to fighting climate change, and why the energy transition in different parts of the world requires varied solutions. David also shares his advice for people looking to enter the clean energy space.  To learn more about ETM, visit the ADB's homepage on the project.

On today's Macrocast, Bryan, John, and Brendan host John Dick from Civic Science and Ylan Mui, a managing director at Penta. Ylan just joined Penta by way of CNBC, where she covered economic and regulatory policy for six years. The group discusses the latest economic sentiment index, which shows consumer optimism ticking down from the record high two weeks ago and more evidence of a "hangover" in spending following the post-COVID surge. Plus, the group  looks ahead to Federal Reserve Chair Powell's upcoming testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, where Democrats like Sherrod Brown are likely to press Powell on the threat to employment posed by rate hikes. Take a look at Penta's latest ESI analysis here.

The Federal Reserve's next moves are on the minds of business leaders everywhere. Some experts warn of a recession, others hold out hope for a "soft landing," and there's plenty of data to support both sides of the argument. For many Fed watchers, that can make it difficult to understand the Fed's thinking. To cut through the noise, Bryan DeAngelis hosts three experts on the Federal Reserve for this episode of What's at Stake. John Fagan and Brendan Walsh, co-founders of Markets Policy Partners and Macrocast co-hosts, and Brai Odion-Esene, founder of SW4 Insights, join the show.  The group explains why we're living through a uniquely challenging time for the Federal Reserve, as it tries to balance its competing mandates of reducing inflation and maintaining employment. They discuss which indicators influence the Fed's agenda the most and whether the Fed's preferred inflation metrics truly reflect Americans' experience.Listen to the most recent episode of the Macrocast with Markets Policy Partners here. Learn more about Markets Policy Partners here and SW4 Insights here.

On today's Macrocast, hosts Bryan DeAngelis and John Fagan are joined by Jill Craig, a partner in Penta's Brussels office, to take a look at new data on the Fed's (former?) favorite inflation rating and whether the market might finally be listening to its signaling. In the second half of the show, Jill shares a European perspective on the war in Ukraine as the group looks back on the year since Russia's invasion.Read Penta's new Q4 2022 GDP Fact Sheet here.

How should businesses engage with policymakers in 2023? On today's episode of What's at Stake, Bryan DeAngelis talks to Meghan Pennington, a partner at Penta, and Michael Griffin, chief research officer of intelligence at Penta, about Penta's new Washington Insights Review.  The Washington Insights Review is based on hundreds of conversations with DC policymakers and highlights their perspectives on policy issues and best practices for government affairs. The group discusses the necessity of a two-way relationship between businesses and policymakers and the importance of organizations finding moments to proactively engage with policymakers. Authenticity when engaging with policymakers is also key, the group explains, especially for issues related to ESG and DEI. For more on the top takeaways from the report, listen to the episode, and download the full Washington Insights Review.Learn more about Penta Policy Insiders.

On today's Macrocast, hosts Bryan DeAngelis, John Fagan, and Brendan Walsh are joined by Penta Director Oliver Edelmann to discuss whether the economic outlook for the U.S. is truly improving on the heels of a uniquely upbeat reading of consumer economic sentiment. Penta's latest Economic Sentiment Index (ESI) found that consumers are more optimistic about the economy, but are we really due for a soft landing? The group also discusses potential changes to President Biden's economic council and the new Chinese sanctions against American companies.Read Penta's latest ESI report here.