‘Paving the Way’ in Pursuit of a Degree Triple Crown

Already armed with a bachelor’s of science and MBA from Babson, Ivashko always planned on pursuing a doctorate. When her alma mater launched its Doctor of Business Administration program last year, she knew it was time to act and an opportunity to make history.

“When I learned that Babson launched its DBA,” she said, “I applied to be a part of this inaugural class, turn my entrepreneurial mindset into high gear, and help pave the way for future doctoral candidates at a place that I hold so dear.”

Ivashko has been serving the life sciences industry with Clarkston Consulting since 2011, lending her experience and expertise to the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. She helps develop and implement digital ecosystems that allow her clients to engage with patients, physicians, payers, and partners.

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Top Consulting Firms of 2026

The 2026 Top 40 Consulting Firms Ranking is designed to provide a clearer, market-aware benchmark of the best consulting firms. Our methodology evaluates consulting companies across prestige, market positioning, growth prospects, candidate outcomes, and standing within the broader consulting market landscape.

Consulting firms don’t operate in isolation — they compete in markets shaped by shifting demand, sector dynamics, and hiring momentum. This year’s ranking reflects where growth is occurring, which firms are gaining ground, and how the competitive landscape is evolving.

The strongest consulting firms distinguish themselves across multiple dimensions. But the “best” firm ultimately depends on your goals, interests, and preferred working environment.

Explore the full list of the 40 top consulting firms and discover the trends shaping the industry in 2026.

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FDA Issues Final Guidance On Clinical Trial Participation: What You Need To Do Now

“On December 15, 2025, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finalized its guidance on Enhancing Participation in Clinical Trials, formally updating expectations for enrollment and trial design. While progress has been made since the draft guidance in 2020, many gaps remain among minority populations, older adults, and patients with comorbidities. Regulatory commentary has long emphasized that traditional trial populations fail to reflect real-world patient complexity,³ creating challenges regarding generalizability and accuracy. Trial representativeness is now an enterprise challenge spanning development strategy, analytics, regulatory planning, and commercial readiness, with implications that extend beyond clinical operations.”

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Consulting Magazine Announces 2026 Rising Stars of the Profession Honorees

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Shoppers React to PepsiCo Slashing Prices for Popular Snacks

The company behind popular snack brands Lays, Tostitos, Doritos, and Cheetos is slashing prices by about 15 percent.

“Larger companies like Pepsi need to gravitate towards what consumer trends are telling them. In this case, it’s value, and it’s healthier options.”

“There are a lot of fast followers in the food industry that will take this as a cue and look to lower prices. I would not be surprised to see that at all.”

 Watch the News Story Here

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The Top Management Consulting Firms in the US

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Clarkston Consulting has announced the next phase of its internal Artificial Intelligence (AI) Transformation Initiative, highlighted by the launch of CLAIRE—Clarkston’s AI Recommendation Engine, the firm’s new enterprise AI platform designed to enhance how stewards work, collaborate, and deliver value to clients. This investment builds on Clarkston’s long history of developing practical, results-driven solutions that support clients through evolving business and technology landscapes.

Over the course of the initiative, Clarkston has prioritized upskilling and enablement at scale. To date, client-serving professionals are trained to identify opportunities to apply AI in ways that reduce cost-to-serve, improve productivity, and deliver measurable outcomes. These efforts ensure that AI adoption at Clarkston is not theoretical but deeply embedded in day-to-day project delivery.

“Our AI transformation represents a direct investment in our stewards and, ultimately, in our clients,” said Tom Finegan, CEO and Co-founder. “By pairing strong foundational training with purpose-built tools like CLAIRE, we are equipping our teams to operate more efficiently and offer innovative, sustainable solutions that meet the evolving needs of our clients.”

Introducing CLAIRE: Clarkston’s AI Recommendation Engine

The launch of CLAIRE, powered by Enterprise ChatGPT from OpenAI, marks an important milestone for the firm. CLAIRE will serve as an enterprise-wide hub for generating insights, enhancing collaboration, improving accuracy, and accelerating project delivery. Through CLAIRE, stewards will also be able to develop secure, no-code custom tools that complement their subject matter expertise.

In addition to this enterprise tool, Clarkston is actively deploying AI solutions that support project work in areas such as requirements gathering, project planning, data validation and migration, script writing, and more. Each solution is developed with a clear objective: deliver meaningful value to our clients while optimizing delivery efficiency and steward productivity.

“We are committed to sharing our AI journey openly—our successes, our challenges, and the lessons we learn along the way,” said Erik Sandstrom, AI Strategy Co-Lead. “Because the AI landscape is evolving rapidly, we’re taking a structured and pragmatic approach to ensure that the solutions we implement consistently generate value for our clients.”

AI Innovation That Builds on a Strong Foundation

The firm’s transformation expands and accelerates the AI services Clarkston already provides, including AI Strategy & Roadmaps, AI Readiness Assessments, Data Architecture Modernization, and Analytics & AI Managed Services. Clarkston continues to design and deploy custom AI-powered tools for clients across its industry verticals, reinforcing a long-standing commitment to delivering practical solutions that work.

Clarkston is evaluating every opportunity—large or small—to incorporate AI in ways that improve delivery outcomes, enhance accuracy, and uncover insights not previously possible. The firm maintains a measured and value-oriented approach, ensuring that experimentation is paired with thoughtful implementation and strong stewardship.

“This AI initiative reflects our commitment to investing in our people and strengthening our capabilities so we can deliver brilliant client service,” said Mike Hackett, President. “By embracing AI in a thoughtful and operationally grounded way, we are positioning both our clients and our stewards for long-term success.”

About Clarkston Consulting

Businesses across the life sciences, consumer products, and retail industries partner with Clarkston Consulting to enhance strategic decision-making, improve operational efficiency, implement new technologies, and promote business growth and market diversification. Leveraging deep functional and industry expertise, our people discover, design, and deliver solutions that fit your business, your goals, and your future. At Clarkston Consulting, your purpose is our purpose.

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Fifty-Nine Named Women Leaders in Consulting Honorees for 2025

For the 20th consecutive year, Consulting Magazine recognizes the outstanding women in the consulting industry contributions to the profession.

The awards program acknowledges female leadership in a sector that has historically been male-dominated. The individual honorees are recognized across eight distinct categories: DEI Champion, Excellence in Client Service, Excellence in Leadership, Excellence in Strategy & Leadership, Future Leaders, Lifetime Achievement, Mentor of the Year, and Technology Trailblazer. The four firm honorees were selected for successful women-led initiatives in DEI programming and efforts to retain female professionals.

Together, the honorees reflect the breadth of contributions shaping the profession today—from hands-on client delivery to mentoring, team-building and the adoption of new tools and methods. The program’s two-decade arc mirrors steady progress for women in consulting while underscoring the work still ahead.

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2025 Change Maker Awards

The Change Maker Award recognizes consultants who go beyond delivering projects — they drive measurable transformation, launch bold initiatives, and shape the culture of their firms. Selected through peer nominations, Change Makers stand out as leaders who create lasting impact for clients, colleagues, and the broader consulting industry. The award not only highlights individual excellence but also shines a light on the firms fostering innovation, collaboration, and meaningful change.

“Clients don’t just respect Christina — they rely on her. She becomes a trusted extension of the client’s team, seamlessly integrating and elevating them.”

View the ceremony video here.

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The Top 50 Women Leaders of 2025

“These remarkable women have demonstrated the vision, adaptability, and collaborative approach necessary to guide their organizations through today’s complex challenges. They understand the importance of cultivating inclusive teams, encouraging innovation, and leading with both resilience and empathy. Through effective communication, mentorship, and a focus on long-term growth, they have created environments where individuals can thrive and perform at their best.”

LaToya’s profile:

LaToya Lee Jones
Partner, Quality + Compliance Lead, Diversity Chair Emeritus, Clarkston Consulting

LaToya Lee Jones is a partner at Clarkston Consulting. Her industry experience spans across pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, healthcare, consumer products, automotive, telecommunications, and industrial equipment. With clients primarily in the pharmaceutical, biotech, and life sciences industries, LaToya specializes in project and program management, as well as computer systems validation.

She has deep experience in business process development for and deployment of quality management systems, including Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS). She is also adept in business process optimization, organizational efficiency, training development and execution, change management, and talent development.

As Clarkston’s Diversity Chair Emeritus, LaToya has served as a leader in diversity, equity, and inclusion for the firm, as well as for her clients and peers. With a passion and deep expertise in DE+I, she has supported the growth of Clarkston’s DE+I services, helping clients develop innovative strategies to improve inclusivity and diversity in the workplace.

LaToya is a firm believer that diversity and a culture of belonging are critical to unleashing innovation and improving organizational effectiveness. She’s an active member of WOCIP, an organization dedicated to promoting the personal and professional development of women in the life sciences industry.

LaToya is also passionate about contributing to the larger consulting community. In 2025, for instance, LaToya spoke on a Women in Consulting panel and contributed to nearly a dozen pieces of thought leadership on top of her busy schedule. She’s also active in the larger life sciences professional industry, attending conferences and events across the U.S., such as LogiMed, WOCIP, America’s SAP  Users’ Group (ASUG), and Veeva.

LaToya holds a number of leadership positions within Clarkston Consulting, including Lead of the firm’s Quality and Compliance Service for Life Sciences. She earned her B.S. in Industrial Engineering from North Carolina A&T State University.

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The 5 Biggest Challenges Facing Retail Pharmacy

“The front of store—health and beauty products, snacks, household goods—all continue to be squeezed by competition from big box stores, and the usual suspects like Amazon,” said David Patterson, associate partner at Clarkston Consulting. “I think as we’ve encountered increasing inflationary pressures, shoppers are looking to the Walmarts or the Costcos due to perceived savings.”

“I do think there’s plenty of room to automate.”

“When you look at the drug store space, many lag behind in terms of the omnichannel experiences that most shoppers expect at this point.”

“There are data security concerns that come with a lot of these new digital platforms, and the more of them that you offer, the more you have to maintain and keep secure.”

Read the Full Drug Store News Article Here

The post Clarkston Associate Partner David Patterson Speaks with Drug Store News on Retail Pharmacy appeared first on Clarkston Consulting.

How Fit Preference Is Reshaping the Apparel Economy

Cory Jackson, a senior manager with Clarkston Consulting and council member with the National Retail Federation, points to an even deeper shift: consumers increasingly consider how their clothing supports their identity — “what the product says about who I am,” as he puts it.

Consumers often buy impulsively, responding to the dopamine hit of products served by social media algorithms. However you slice it, the reality is that retailers face stiff competition from all angles. “Temu might have it cheaper,” Jackson notes. “How are you going to compete with an extremely discounted product that looks the same as yours?”

How do you gauge the efficacy of size and fit solutions in your digital stores? For Jackson, the litmus test is straightforward: its impact on conversions and returns. “Are your customers abandoning carts or ordering multiple sizes because they aren’t sure of fit? Is your fit/sizing solution reducing that behavior?” Jackson reasons. “You know you have a winning solution when customers stop complaining or asking questions related to fit and instead trust the solutions you have in place.”

See the Playbook Here 

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