Across the landscape of our society—whether it's business, sports, entertainment, or politics—it's very rare for all the eyes of the world to stop and concentrate their attention on one event, one moment. Presidential debates are one of those very rare moments. Last night’s first—and only?—presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump offered viewers in the U.S. and around the globe the chance to compare the candidates and hear their pitch to voters on why the...
Jun 28, 2024•34 min
What happens when voter indecision grips a nation during a high-stakes election featuring two well-known incumbents? Join Bryan DeAngelis, Partner at Penta, as he sits down with Daniel Cox, Director and Founder of the Survey Center on American Life, and Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, to dissect this unprecedented scenario through the lens of new polling . They explore how the dynamics of this election are shaping voter sentiment, contributing to a growing sense of pessimism ...
Jun 06, 2024•36 min
Today on What's At Stake, we have a special episode hosted by Mark MacGregor, managing director out of Penta's London office, who speaks with four of his strategy colleagues from across the globe: Marykate Maguire, an associate in the Dublin office; Ruairidh Fraser, an associate in the London office; Grace Boyle, an associate in the Washington, D.C. office; and Emily Wilson, an associate in the New York City office. The conversation, spanning several time zones, covers what it's like to be a you...
May 29, 2024•34 min
This week on What's At Stake, tune into another episode of our Artificially Intelligent Conversations series. Each month, Penta Partners Andrea Christianson and Chris Mehigan will dissect the AI latest news and developments from each side of the Atlantic, helping you understand how AI will affect stakeholder management, policy, and more. This week, they host Nicole DeCario, Director of AI & Society at the Allen Institute for AI (AI2) to cover AI literacy, policy, and industry norms. Nicole d...
May 16, 2024•43 min
On this week's episode of What's at Stake, Penta Partner Bryan DeAngelis and Managing Director Elliott Owensby sat down with Ripple's Head of U.S. Public Policy Lauren Belive to discuss all things crypto including Ripple's legal victory against the SEC and the company's recent announcement that it plans to launch a stablecoin later this year. Throughout the discussion, Lauren underscored the importance of crafting clear rules of the road for crypto in the U.S. To help bring that vision to realit...
May 14, 2024•25 min
In 2024, a wave of global elections is shaping the landscape of corporate engagement, increasing partisan contention across virtually every issue. On today's episode of What's At Stake, we drill down on the upcoming European elections. From our Brussels office, Penta Senior Partner Jill Craig and Partner Rory O'Donnell join Andrea Christianson, partner in the D.C. office, to discuss the key players in the EU elections, what issues voters are paying the most attention to, and what businesses arou...
May 08, 2024•42 min
This week's episode of What's At Stake examines the phenomenon known as the Taylor Swift economy. Host and Senior Partner Kevin Madden sits down with colleagues Isabel Nieves, Runal Patel, Bianca Schwam Auriemo, and Camryn Banks to analyze how Taylor Swift's latest album, " The Tortured Poet's Department ," demonstrates her impact beyond music and into economic ecosystems across industries and global markets. The group also broke down the album's reception and the work involved in promoting and ...
May 06, 2024•47 min
This week on What's At Stake, our host Bryan DeAngelis, partner at Penta and head of the Washington, D.C. office, is joined by Oliver Edelmann, director at Penta, and Ananya Kumar, the associate director for digital currencies at the Atlantic Council's GeoEconomics Center , to discuss Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). Just a few years ago, less than 30 countries were exploring a CBDC—as of this week, over 130 countries are doing so. Ananya, Bryan, and Oliver break down this trend and disc...
May 02, 2024•36 min
This week on What's at Stake, Kevin Madden, Senior Partner at Penta, hosts Wes Turbeville, Senior Vice President at ID.me, to discuss how ID.me is tackling the evolving challenge of digital identity fraud and making it easier for Americans to access services online. Digital technology has redefined how Americans interact with the government, from veterans managing benefits online to citizens filing taxes electronically. Wes and Kevin start the conversation on the urgent need to protect our ident...
Apr 16, 2024•32 min
This week on What's At Stake, our host Penta Managing Director Ylan Mui is joined by CNBC's Senior Media & Tech Correspondent Julia Boorstin to discuss her new book, "When Women Lead." In a world where only around 10% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women and less than 2% of venture capital dollars go to startups with female founders, Julia and Ylan break down what the book can teach us about what women achieve, why they succeed, and what we can learn from them. Beyond recapping some of the stories ...
Apr 12, 2024•34 min
This week's episode of "What's At Stake" dives deep into the high-stakes dynamics of the 2024 presidential election. Hosts Bryan DeAngelis and Ylan Mui are joined by Leigh Ann Caldwell, co-author of The Washington Post's Early 202 newsletter and political correspondent for The Washington Post. The crew explores the rematch between former President Trump and incumbent President Biden. Beyond the horse-race coverage, the group scrutinizes the complex policy challenges facing both candidates. Leigh...
Apr 09, 2024•33 min
This week on What's At Stake, Penta Partner Andrea Christianson is joined by two executives from Cognizant Technologies: Senior Vice President of Legal and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Tobi Young and Chief Technology Officer for AI Babak Hodjat . The group discusses AI in the context of the workforce and how it could help companies operate more dynamically. Additionally, they highlight how tools like generative AI are bridging knowledge gaps and democratizing tech use. Tobi and Babak also spo...
Apr 03, 2024•35 min
In celebration of International Women's Month and support of Penta's global DE&I efforts, join Senior Associate Lizzie Johnson as she speaks with Penta Managing Directors Ylan Mui from D.C., Louise Ford from London, and Deborah Giam from Singapore about their career experiences and advice for young women in the workforce. The group discusses how companies can support women (and all of their employees) to build a stronger workforce with opportunities including mentorship, flexibility, and pai...
Mar 29, 2024•36 min
This week on What's at Stake, hosts Penta Partner Bryan DeAngelis and Managing Director Ylan Mui are joined by Senior Vice President of Strategic Communications for the American Gaming Association Joe Maloney for a special March Madness episode on the American gaming industry. They discuss the contributions of the industry including its impact on jobs, wages, and tax revenues, as well as how casinos are becoming institutions for economic revival in communities seeking economic growth. Bryan, Yla...
Mar 25, 2024•42 min
This week on What's at Stake, hosts Penta Partner Bryan DeAngelis and Managing Director Ylan Mui are joined by John Fagan and Brendan Walsh from Markets Policy Partners. In the wake of the March Federal Reserve Open Market Committee meeting, the group dissects the potential for upcoming rate cuts and implications for financial markets. Amidst election year tensions, they also explore the nuanced interplay between monetary policy and politics. Will a June or July rate cut signal the start of an e...
Mar 21, 2024•36 min
This week on What's at Stake, hosts Penta Partner Bryan DeAngelis and Managing Director Ylan Mui are joined by Penta Senior Partner Kevin Madden for a special episode on President Biden's impassioned State of the Union address. They assess Biden's performance delivering a speech that spanned many different policy areas, including healthcare, the economy, and immigration—pivotal issues given this year's election. Bryan, Ylan, and Kevin also discuss how the President's adept handling of disruptors...
Mar 08, 2024•30 min
On this week's episode of What's At Stake, Penta Managing Partner Andy Whitehouse sits down with journalist and author Josie Cox to celebrate the launch of her new book, "Women Money Power." During their discussion, Josie recounts the journey of completing her new book, detailing the book's inspiration, research, and drafting process. Josie also shares some of her most fascinating findings, detailing pivotal moments in history that have shaped women's financial autonomy including women's entry i...
Mar 05, 2024•32 min
In this week's episode of What's At Stake, hosts Bryan DeAngelis and Tucker Warren, partners from Penta's Washington, D.C. office, welcome special guest Eleanor Hawkins, reporter and author of the Axios Communicators newsletter. The discussion explores the origins and success of Axios Communicators, Eleanor's newsletter that offers insights on the latest communication trends impacting businesses, leaders, and communicators. Eleanor shares her perspectives on emerging topics influencing corporate...
Mar 05, 2024•39 min
This week on What's At Stake, tune into another episode of our Artificially Intelligent Conversations series. Each month, Penta Partners Andrea Christianson and Chris Mehigan will dissect the AI latest news and developments from each side of the Atlantic, helping you understand how AI will affect stakeholder management, policy, and more. This week, they discuss the fascinating ways in which AI will influence policy, and, simultaneously, how policy will influence AI. The pair touches on the impac...
Feb 29, 2024•23 min
In this final joint episode of the Macrocast, host Ylan Mui, Managing Director at Penta, alongside co-hosts John Fagan and Brendan Walsh of Markets Policy Partners say their farewells. The Macrocast will no longer continue as a joint production. Instead, John and Brendan will be spearheading its relaunch under the Markets Policy Partners banner. This episode is not a goodbye but rather a reunion, as Tony Fratto, founder of the Macrocast and Hamilton Place Strategies, now leading communications a...
Feb 23, 2024•33 min
This week on What's at Stake, Bryan and Ylan are joined by Ben Ritz, director of the Center for Funding America's Future at the Progressive Policy Institute. Ben, Ylan, and Bryan have a great conversation on key fiscal policy priorities including the current state of U.S. government funding and America's national debt. Ben explains the current state of play and implications of the proposed Fiscal Stability Act, which would create a fiscal commission in charge of monitoring U.S. fiscal policy. Be...
Feb 21, 2024•28 min
Join Ylan, John, and Brendan on the Macrocast this week as they discuss the unexpected inflation data and its ripple effects. They discuss January's inflation rates and how they will impact the Federal Reserve's interest rate policy leading up to election season. They also break down retail sales and discuss if the soft landing is likely amidst the tension between layoffs and resilience in various job sectors. The group also discusses the dichotomy between the U.S.'s growing economy and technica...
Feb 16, 2024•26 min
On this week's episode of What's at Stake, Penta Partner Bryan DeAngelis and Managing Director Ylan Mui explore the implications of the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act with expert insights from guests Michael Steel, senior vice president of Communications at Business Roundtable and Kasey Pittman, a director with Baker Tilly’s Washington national tax practice. They offer analysis on critical updates to business tax provisions, highlighting potential impacts on low-income families...
Feb 12, 2024•34 min
On today's episode of the Macrocast, Ylan, Brendan, and John examine the implications of extensive borrowing, as the U.S. debt approaches 106% of GDP. The group discusses the projections from the Congressional Budget Office, the impact of rising interest rates, and the scrutiny on the Treasury Department's past decisions. Ylan, John, and Brendan also discuss the impact of expiring tax cuts. Ylan, Brendan, and John then shift to a discussion about the challenges confronting the commercial real es...
Feb 09, 2024•30 min
On this week's episode of What’s at Stake, Penta Partner Bryan DeAngelis sits down with Emily Vaughan, Senior Director of Client Services, Natalie Bahmanyar, Associate Director of Policy Insiders, and Sehare Hemani, Director of Research, to dissect the Washington Insights Review, Penta’s annual report based on hundreds of conversations with D.C. policymakers. The group dives into the complexity of the rapidly evolving digital world, and how technological advancements like artificial intelligence...
Feb 07, 2024•32 min
On today's episode of the Macrocast, Ylan, John, and Brendan are joined by Loren Smith, President of Skyline Policy Risk Group. The group delves into the addition of 353,000 jobs to the economy in January, which surpassed the expected 180,000 projected by market forecasters. They analyze the implications of this growth streak across various sectors and its potential impact on the Federal Reserve's approach to rate cuts. The discussion also explores recent nuances of the labor market, including w...
Feb 02, 2024•31 min
On this week's edition of What's at Stake, Andy Whitehouse, host and senior partner of Penta's NYC office is joined by President of Penta Matt McDonald, D.C.-based Partner Stacy Kerr, and Brussels-based Partner Conall McDevitt to discuss Penta's presence in Davos in January. Andy, Matt, Stacy, and Conall took to the mountains for the 2024 World Economic Forum. During the episode, the group shared their reflections on the week’s events, and unpacked the implications of global gatherings like Davo...
Feb 01, 2024•35 min
This week on the Macrocast, Ylan, John, and Brendan are joined by Nick Bunker, Director of North American Economic Research at Indeed to discuss the latest core PCE data. Nick discusses some of Indeed's proprietary labor market data, including its Job Postings Index , that shows that average wages are now outpacing inflation. Nick brings his expertise to the conversation, discussing the Fed's next moves and the robust demand for workers across the globe. The group also forecasts future labor mar...
Jan 26, 2024•33 min
Tune in for another exciting edition of the Macrocast! This week, Ylan, John, and Brendan dissect how geopolitical chess moves—like Russia's recent maneuvers and the Houthi conflicts—pose a threat to economic stability. The discussion includes commentary on stagflation and the Fed's delicate interest rate tightrope walk, considering how these decisions could affect the approaching 2024 election cycle. Through this lens, Ylan, John, and Brendan analyze the fiscal philosophies of emergent Republic...
Jan 19, 2024•34 min
In today's installation of our 2024 election series, host and Penta Senior Partner Kevin Madden is joined by Penta Director Brendan Conley and special guest David Kochel, an inside participant in six presidential campaigns and current host of the HighBall Politics podcast. The group breaks down the results of the recent Iowa Republican caucus, examining the political undercurrents that contributed to Donald Trump's significant victory. The discussion delves into the debate on the media's early c...
Jan 18, 2024•34 min
