Best Use of Thought Leadership
PwC launched its ‘Framework for Growth’ report to stimulate a national dialogue on an effective industrial strategy for the UK, leveraging insights from extensive business interviews and economic modeling to address the country’s lagging economy and establish trust between policymakers and businesses, while positioning PwC as a key facilitator and convenor of strategic discussions in the lead-up to the 2024 General Election.
Britain’s economy has continued to lag behind other G7 countries, and the country has struggled to regain its historical rate of growth. Although a complex issue, PwC identified that re-establishing an industrial strategy would be a crucial step in revitalising the UK economy.
With public and private sector finances under continued pressure, PwC recognised that difficult decisions would be needed to prioritise the most impactful focus areas for intervention. They were also mindful that businesses felt previous industrial strategies had often ignored their priorities and been ineffective in driving growth, so trust in such policy interventions was low.
PwC anticipated that the forthcoming 2024 General Election was likely to result in an industrial strategy being developed, but that its success would depend on clear prioritisation and strong collaboration between businesses and policymakers. The firm therefore set out to spark a national, business-led discussion on what an effective industrial strategy would look like, in the form of its ‘Framework for Growth’ report.
PwC conducted 60 in-depth interviews and a survey of 1,200 businesses across all sectors, to understand the possible impact of ten key components of economic growth (e.g., Skills, Digital Transformation and Infrastructure). The firm combined the results with innovative economic modelling that revealed how interventions in certain components would benefit both the UK’s overall economy and the performance of individual sectors.
To shape the research, PwC formed a committee of its senior experts and key external advisors, including a former Chief Economist at the Bank of England, the Chief of Staff to former Prime Minster Theresa May, and a former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.
PwC set up a project team that included consultants from its Strategy, Economics and Government & Health Industries practices, and specialists from Sales & Marketing and Corporate Affairs. This breadth of expertise enabled the firm to design the research programme around business insights, industry experience and economic analyses – and communicate the findings effectively.
Framework for Growth was shared with a wide range of business leaders, but also created the opportunity to reinforce PwC’s main goal: bringing business voices into the process of policy development. Its launch events and round-table discussions brought together commercial and governmental leaders, to both overcome business scepticism and provide a robust evidence base for a new industrial strategy.
PwC’s work gained extensive media coverage, and established PwC as a pivotal convener, opening the door to many strategic discussions with priority clients and government departments. Indeed, its Framework for Growth campaign set a new benchmark in thought leadership engagement for the firm, demonstrating its impact across multiple channels and audiences. Online media engagement was nearly double what the firm sees across the board compared to other social content, and c.5% higher than both its 2024 Annual Report and initial engagement with the launch of its well-established CEO Survey. Meanwhile, targeted launch events in attracted senior representatives from industry and the Department for Business and Trade, and enabled PwC to engage in high-value conversations with many priority clients.
View the PwC profile in the MCA Members Directory.