LEAD Network CEO Allyson Zimmerman on Gender Equity, Inclusive Retail & The Future of DEI | WRC 2025

Omni Talk Retail

Live from the VusionGroup Podcast Studio at the World Retail Congress 2025, Omni Talk catches up with Allyson Zimmerman, CEO of the LEAD Network. Allison discusses her journey from KFC kitchens to global NGO leadership, how the LEAD Network is advancing gender equity in the retail and CPG sectors, and what retailers must do to create workplaces that are truly inclusive.

Key Moments:

  • (0:38) Allyson Zimmerman introduction and career background
  • (1:50) The LEAD Network’s mission and scale across Europe
  • (3:40) State of DEI: U.S. vs. global perspective
  • (5:00) Why retailers must reflect their consumer base
  • (6:00) Action vs. language in diversity initiatives
  • (7:20) Moving beyond representation to systemic change
  • (8:00) Example: CEO-led sponsorship driving talent equity
  • (9:15) Listening to resistance and addressing fear
  • (10:00) Conference insights: trust, culture, and employee-as-customer mindset

#LEADNetwork #genderequity #RetailDEI #worldretailcongress #WomenInRetail #inclusiveleadership #retailinnovation #employeeengagement #omnitalk #retailtransformation #DiversityInRetail #systemicchange #ConsumerGoodsLeadership



This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy
More description

Live from the VusionGroup Podcast Studio at the World Retail Congress 2025, Omni Talk catches up with Allyson Zimmerman, CEO of the LEAD Network. Allison discusses her journey from KFC kitchens to global NGO leadership, how the LEAD Network is advancing gender equity in the retail and CPG sectors, and what retailers must do to create workplaces that are truly inclusive.

Key Moments:

  • (0:38) Allyson Zimmerman introduction and career background
  • (1:50) The LEAD Network’s mission and scale across Europe
  • (3:40) State of DEI: U.S. vs. global perspective
  • (5:00) Why retailers must reflect their consumer base
  • (6:00) Action vs. language in diversity initiatives
  • (7:20) Moving beyond representation to systemic change
  • (8:00) Example: CEO-led sponsorship driving talent equity
  • (9:15) Listening to resistance and addressing fear
  • (10:00) Conference insights: trust, culture, and employee-as-customer mindset

#LEADNetwork #genderequity #RetailDEI #worldretailcongress #WomenInRetail #inclusiveleadership #retailinnovation #employeeengagement #omnitalk #retailtransformation #DiversityInRetail #systemicchange #ConsumerGoodsLeadership



This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy
2025-05-15 11 min Transcript 5 chapters
Listen elsewhere

Available Results

Generated results are saved to your library for reuse and search.

No generated results are available for this episode yet.
Open the Transcript tab to load the transcript.