The Era of the GLP-1

More about Alison Furman:
Alison Furman is PwC’s US Consumer Markets Industry Leader across PwC’s three lines of service: Advisory, Assurance and Tax. Her portfolio includes PwC’s Retail, Hospitality, CPG, Travel, Airlines and Restaurant sub-sectors. Leveraging her extensive industry experience and the PwC network she works closely with senior leaders to grow, transform and take advantage of disruption, in the constantly changing landscape of Consumer Markets.​ 

A nationally recognized thought leader on consumer behavior, Ali shapes the conversation on how consumers think, spend, and engage with brands. She is an expert featured in Top Tier broadcast and written media including CBS, NPR, Harvard Business Review, Bloomberg Live Radio, Good Morning America, CNBC, The TODAY Show and more, where she provides clear analysis on trends including generational trends, GLP-1s, and AI. ​ 

Ali serves as an active sponsor and strategic collaborator to the Consumer Brands Association (CBA) and sits on the NRF Foundation Board. She has delivered keynotes at NRF’s Big Show, CBA leadership forums, and other premier stages, where leaders consistently describe her perspective as actionable.​ 

Prior to her current role, Ali served as the Managing Partner of PwC’s US Transformation Consulting business, overseeing a ~$4B P&L and leading management consulting capabilities across strategy, customer, operations, M&A, finance, workforce, and technology. She is also a longtime PwC Deals Partner, having advised on hundreds of transactions — including many of the largest Consumer Markets mega-deals valued at more than $5 billion.​ 

Beyond her professional accomplishments, Ali is a mom of two boys, a former varsity basketball player at Swarthmore College, and still the program’s all-time leading 3-point scorer. She also holds a B.A. in English Literature and Film & Media Studies — a background that fuels her curiosity, storytelling instincts, and commitment to elevating diverse voices and perspectives.​ 

More about Paul Leinwand:
Paul Leinwand is a thought leader on strategy, growth, and capability building for Strategy&, PwC’s strategy consulting group. Based in Chicago, he is a principal with PwC US Paul advises clients on the topic of strategy, growth, and capability building, with a focus on the consumer product and retail sectors. 

Recent Publications 

• Co-Author of four books, Beyond Digital: How Great Leaders Transform Their Organizations and Shape the Future, Strategy That Works: How Winning Companies Close the Strategy-to-Execution Gap (Harvard Business Review Press, 2016), The Essential Advantage: How to Win with a Capabilities-Driven Strategy (Harvard Business Review Press, 2010) and Cut Costs and Grow Stronger (Harvard Business Review Press, 2009), as well as several articles in the Harvard Business Review and strategy+business. 
• “Create a System to Grow Consistently” – Five elements can move you beyond episodic success, a Strategy&study. 
• “Pay Attention to Revenue Growth. But How?”, which appeared in strategy+business. 
• “The Power of Operational POS – From Managing at the Mean to Managing the Meaningful”, a Strategy&study. 
• “The End of Trade ‘Spending’? Two New Approaches Can Recoup This Investment”, a Strategy&study. 

Mr. Leinwand earned an MBA with Distinction from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Washington University. He currently teaches at Kellogg as an Adjunct Professor of Strategy. 

More about PwC: 
At PwC, we help clients build trust and reinvent so they can turn complexity into competitive advantage. We’re a tech-forward, people-empowered network with more than 370,000 people in 149 countries. Across audit and assurance, tax and legal, deals and consulting we help clients build, accelerate and sustain momentum. Find out more at www.pwc.com.